Seven
by RayRox360
Summary: You all know the story. An angel, one who has seen the surface will return and the Underground will go empty. Seven souls were required. They had six. One last human was needed. One who would truly empty the Underground. But what if they didn't have six souls? What if no humans souls had EVER been collected? And what if instead of one human falling that day, there were SEVEN?
1. Chapter 1: Once Upon A Time

**HELLO AND WELCOME BEAUTIES!**

 **First thing's first, I must apologize. I know it's stupid and horrible to begin ANOTHER story when I haven't even finished the ones I'm currently working on, but . . . . I COULDN'T HELP MYSELF! I held out as long as I could. I've wanted to make a fic about this series for a LONG TIME, but I've held off to focus on my other stories. But I can't do it anymore! I literally have creative juices leaking from every orifice of my body. (Try getting rid of** ** _that_** **mental image hehehe)**

 **Anyway, this fic is about the six other human souls that fell into the Underground, but with a twist. What if they all fell at the same time, including Frisk? (PS, Frisk is a girl. It's too difficult otherwise, deal with it) Follow the gang as they trek through the Underground and try and stay alive!**

 **Most of the scenes and dialogue will remain the same, but I will take the liberality of adding my own dialogue to make the story flow more. Don't worry, all your lovable characters will still remain the same. Except for Jerry. Fuck that dude.**

 **Anyway, to make things less confusing for you, I'll tell you which character is which soul. Ahem!**

 **. . . .**

 **Actually! NO! I'll keep it a secret. At least for now. If you want to venture a guess, go ahead, but it probably won't remain secret for very long. . . . . actually, this is stupid. It'll be pretty obvious once you start reading so I don't know what the point of this is . . . .**

 **HUMOR ME!**

 **How's 'bout this? I'll just give you some stats on the characters. (PS, there are OCs. Come on, it's obvious. We have literally NO info on those souls other than what they represent. Don't worry. Frisky'll still be the same!**

 **Kari Green:  
-female  
-16  
-5'8**

 **Zephyr (pronounced Zefer) Cole:  
-male  
-20  
-6'4**

 **Damian Jemm (D.J.):  
-male  
-16  
-5'10**

 **Violet Welsh  
-female  
-15  
-5'7**

 **Harper Lane  
-female  
-15  
5'3**

 **Oliver Anders  
-male  
-11  
-4'7**

 **Frisk Anders (just go with it)  
-female  
-11  
-4'7**

 **Alright, there you go. Anyway, I'm done with this. I hope you all enjoy, and don't kill me my other fic fans! Please like, follow and comment. I'll be sure to give shout outs to whoever does either of these, plus comments will get their responses in the next chapters! Whoo! Reader integration!**

 **Anyway, please enjoy SEVEN!**

* * *

 **Chapter 1: Once Upon A Time**

 _Long ago, two races ruled over Earth:_

 _Humans and Monsters_

 _. . . . ._

 _One day, war broke out among_

 _the two races._

 _. . . . ._

 _After a long battle, the humans_

 _were victorious._

 _They sealed the monsters underground_

 _with a magic spell_

 _. . . . ._

 _Years later_

 _Mt. Ebott_

 _201X_

 _. . . . . ._

 _Legends say that those who climb the mountain_

 _never return_ _. . . . ._

 _BUT WE'RE GETTING AHEAD OF OURSELVES! LET'S REWIND A BIT, SHALL WE?!_

* * *

 **Mountain View High School**

 ** _Home of the Warriors~_**

"HEY, DOUCHEWAFFLE!"

Kari barely had any time to turn around before she felt something hard slam into her nose, the force quickly knocking her backwards as she fell to the floor. Lying there, she merely let out a sigh, arms splayed out on the cold hallway floor.

"Got to admit, they're real creative with their names." She chimed, gazing up at the girl now standing above her. "And their aim is getting better too." Her friend pointed out, glancing over at the football now laying a little ways off.

Now one could say her reaction to getting her nose mangled by a stray football while being referred to as a crappy breakfast pastry wasn't what you'd expect, it was all too normal for Kari Green.

The sixteen-year-old all but found the situation mundane, seeing as how it had been happening to her ever since she'd first started school seven years ago. Now, starting school at nine might also be strange to most, but once again, it certainly wasn't for Kari. In fact, it probably wouldn't be very strange to _most_ orphans.

WHOOPS! Forgot to mention that. Well, not like Kari mentions it much either. In fact, it was the main reason she was always a target during impromptu football practice in the halls between fifth and sixth period. Why, she still didn't know. But it didn't really matter. All she knew was that it wasn't about to stop anytime soon.

There were times when Kari wondered if that was the _only_ reason the kids picked on her. After all, she didn't think she was _that_ bad to look at. Now her friend (call him her boyfriend and she'll break your fingers), DJ would always tell her she looked like an angel that fell from heaven, but she wasn't about to take the word of the boy who hit on just about every girl he glanced at.

Kari had long deep brown hair that dripped down into golden tips at the bottom. She had startling emerald eyes and more than one cluster of freckles on her deep tan skin. She wasn't what one would call fat, but she had enough meat on her bones and a fierce enough attitude to warrant apprehension when it came to messing with her.

Course, that didn't stop the _entire_ school from doing it.

Her friend, Terra quickly helped her to her feet as the jocks hustled over. "Whoops! Sorry, Green." Tyler, captain of the douchebag -I mean, football team said sweetly. "Didn't see you there." He grinned before punching the girl in the shoulder, knocking her back into the lockers behind her.

The players behind the boy snorted in laughter before walking off.

Terra let out a sigh before stooping down, quickly helping the girl collect her things. "I don't know _why_ you let those losers push you around like that, Kari." Her best friend of four years growled at her. "You could totally teach him a lesson. Show him just who he's messing with." She grinned at the thought.

Kari did no such thing as she snatched her Chemistry book from the girl's hands. "I've already been through this with you, T." She muttered before turning down the hall, her friend quickly jogging after her. "We still have two more years to go in this Crap-fest." She sighed.

Stopping in front of her locker, she nonchalantly picked off the newly attached notes and insults that had been taped on before opening it, shoving her books inside. "Which means two more years of dealing with these shitfaces. Would I like to maybe get back at them? Yes. Would I like to throw a football in _Tyler's face?_ Of course. Would I like to slap Tiffany across the face and shake that Platinum Blonde Bitch until her hair extensions fall out?!"

The kids in the hall stopped and threw the girls strange looks, to which Terra merely blushed and gave a nervous smile.

Kari blinked for a moment before clearing her throat. "Most definitely. But I'm only going to make things worse for myself and for my family if I do that. The best thing to do is keep my mouth shut, my head down and just . . . try to survive." She sighed, running a hand through her hair. "Granted, it goes against _everything_ I believe, but it just might get me through this hell."

Terra stood in silence for a moment before letting out a sigh. "I hate it when you're right."

"I know. That makes it even better."

"Shut up."

The two girls giggled to themselves before another shout rang out over the loud chatter of kids milling through the halls. Everyone quickly whipped their heads towards the sound, wondering which new victim the football team had cornered.

Kari stared at the scene for a moment before her fists clenched and her eyes narrowed into thin slits as she caught a view of their victim.

The girl's name was Violet. Violet Welsh. She was supposed to be a sophomore, but her above-average intellect had proven her worthy to be bumped up a grade, which got her more than her wanted amount of attention, most of it negative.

She had straight, shoulder length dirty blonde hair, a dark purple ribbon tied up in the back. Her large round glasses framed her narrow face perfectly, matching the rest of her body, which was tall and lanky.

Her glasses were now on the floor, as well as the books that had once been in her hands. The jocks and cheerleaders around her laughed as she fumbled around the floor, desperately reaching blindly for her glasses, only to have the kids kick it further and further away from her whenever she would get close.

It was obvious the girl was on the verge of tears.

"Terra, you know all that stuff I just said?"

"Yeah?"

"Fuck it."

Kari ignored the shouts and curses she received as she pushed past the gathering crowd. Jumping into the clearing, she pushed the nearest jock, sending the boy stumbling slightly, mostly out of shock than anything else.

"Leave her alone, you shitbags!" She snarled, quickly kneeling down to the ground. Picking up the glasses from the floor, she straightened the lenses before gently handing them back to Violet. The girl wiped the moisture from her eyes before reaching out for her glasses. "Thank you." She whispered as she placed them on her face.

Kari nodded before twisting her head around, coming to glare at the others once more. "What's the matter with you? Picking on someone weaker than you? Is that how you get your kicks, huh? Is that how you make yourselves feel better?!" She snarled.

"If so, you're even more pathetic than you think we are! She's never done anything to you, and come to think of it, I haven't either! None of us have! So why do you strive to make our lives so horrible? Is it just some sick pleasure to you? Is it just cause you're curious? Cause you want to see what'll happen? Do you not think it matters or something? Cause it does!" She growled at them, stalking closer.

The group of elites glanced at each other in silence for a moment, only for a lone voice to drift up over the murmur ringing out in the crowd.

"No, we know it matters."

The crowd parted to reveal a tall blonde in a cheerleading outfit. Her golden hair was perfectly curled and bounced up and down as she walked. Her ruby red lips were parted in a cruel smirk and her perfectly manicured nails drummed against her hip as she walked forward.

"It's just that _you_ don't"

Kari let out a growl and folded her arms across her chest. "Oh, Tiffany. I thought the air smelled a little vain."

The girl let out a small chuckle. "Well. You know what they say. The nose of a bloodhound . . ."

Kari felt her fingers twitch as the crowd began to laugh. Violet let out a small whimper and inched closer to the girl, seeming to try and hide behind the older. The cheerleader raised a brow as Kari stalked closer, pointing an accusing finger in her face.

"Listen here, bitch. I don't care if you make fun of me. I don't care that you stick gum in my hair or glue my hand to my locker or put firecrackers in my mashed potatoes." The kids shared amused looks at that. "But you _don't_ go messing with _my SISTER! GOT IT?!"_ She snarled.

Tiffany stared at the girl in silence, an amused smile appearing on her face before she answered. "Aaron, Jason. Would you maybe like to go and remind the little witch who runs things around here?" She called to the boys behind her.

Kari and Violet shared nervous glances as two of the larger jocks stepped forward.

"What the _hell's_ going on now?!"

The others turned their head as another boy pushed his way past the crowd, quickly coming into view. He was tall and had scruffy dark brown hair, the tips dyed deep orange, nearly the same color as his amber eyes.

"Oh great." Kari muttered as she placed a hand to her forehead. _Just what we need in this situation._ She muttered to herself. _The hothead with a worse temper than me._

Damian pushed the last few kids out of the way as he walked over. "Oh, Tiffany. I should have known _you'd_ be the one sending everyone into a frenzy." The teen muttered, quickly standing next to Kari, giving her a questioning look, silently asking if she was alright.

She nodded before the pair turned back to stare at the Elites in front of them. Tiffany chuckled at the sight. "Oh look. the two lovebirds finally together at last." She giggled.

Kari grit her teeth, forcing herself to stay silent, if only to avoid fueling the already burning fire. But Tiffany had no problem adding a few more gallons of kerosene.

"I was just telling your little girlfriend here she should remember her place. After all, you and your little freak family aren't very high on the social ladder. Hate for you guys to find yourselves even lower. Though, who are we kidding? To get any lower, you're gonna need a couple shovels."

Damian felt the frown on his face deepen as the crowd continued to laugh at the girls taunts. His fingers curled slightly, Kari noticing he had yet to remove his weight lifting gloves from practice. _Forgot all the clubs had a meeting today after school. Damn thing must have let out early._ She realized, before glancing around at the large number of students around. _That explains why there's still so many kids that haven't gone home yet._

"Fuck off, Tiffany. Nobody's in the mood for any of your bullshit." He sighed tiredly.

"No. Nobody's in the mood for _your_ bullshit." The girl sniped, pointing a finger into the boy's chest. "Face it, losers. You're the lowest of the low at this school. Worms. Ants. Dirt. Your sisters are freaks. Your brother's a wimp, and I'm pretty sure your girlfriend's supposed to be on display at the San Diego Zoo. I bet nobody would even care if you dropped off the face of the Earth, so why don't you do us all a favor and-"

"OH. MY. GOD! Do you ever stop talking?!" DJ exclaimed, pulling at the bottom of his eyes with his hands. He secretly winked over at Kari, who immediately caught on.

"I know, right?" She muttered. "I think you're the reason the gene pool needs a lifeguard."

A loud _'ooooo'_ went through the crowd as Tiffany's mouth dropped open. The jocks behind her howled in laughter, only to slam their mouths shut at the glare they received from the cheerleader.

"Excuse me?" She whispered furiously.

"I think we need to speak up, Kar. The cotton in her brain finally made it down to her ears." Damian smirked, vaguely noticing the kids around them chuckle at that. Tiffany seemed to take notice of it as well as she clenched her fists. "Don't even start, you freaks. I will _end_ you."

Kari stepped forward and held up her finger. "Umm . . if you could end us _before_ you start blabbering again, that'd be greatly appreciated."

The crowd began to giggle louder.

Tyler pushed past the other jocks. "You better lay off, Dipshits."

DJ opened his mouth, only to close it once more and place a hand on his hip. "You know, I'd like to insult you, but that'd be beyond the level of your intelligence."

Even the jocks were beginning to chuckle now.

Tyler stalked forward. "Shut your mouths, freaks." He snarled.

Neither teens seemed bothered by the threat as they continued, all the while, Violet staring at them as if they were crazy while silently praying they wouldn't get her killed. Kari folded her arms on Damian's shoulder and rested her head on them, smiling innocently up at the jock. "Come on, Tyler. Keep speaking. Maybe someday you'll say something intelligent!" She said encouragingly.

Tiffany's fists shook at her side as she rushed forward and slammed her hands into Kari's chest, pushing the girl backwards slightly. "GO KILL YOURSELF!" She screamed at her.

Kari chuckled and shrugged her shoulders. "If I _did_ want to kill myself, I'd just climb up your ego and jump to your IQ"

The crowd roared in laughter.

Tiffany's face flared red as she let out a scream, swinging a fist towards the girl. Kari smirked and easily dodged it, watching the cheerleader stumble forward at the force she sent towards her attack. "Man, with coordination like that, it's no wonder you aren't knocked up yet." Damian laughed.

"FUCK YOU!" She screamed. "Just wait till I tell my Daddy about this! Your asses are going down!"

DJ rolled his eyes. "Please, isn't your dad a little busy banging the lunch lady?"

The crowd erupted in noise, the hallways echoing with roars of laughter and shouts of dismay.

Tiffany's face seemed to be glowing at this point, her fingernails digging into the palm of her skin. "YEAH, WELL AT LEAST MY DAD WANTED ME AROUND!"

Silence.

The girl let out a wicked giggle, realizing she'd finally gained back control, and not just over the crowd. "That's right. You're the freaks of this school. No, of this town! Nobody ever wants you around." A sly smile spread onto her face, revealing pearly white teeth. "Not even your parents."

Violet gasped.

Kari's fists clenched

Damian's eyes flared.

"Watch it, bitch." The boy snarled quietly.

"Don't you dare." Kari finished.

Tiffany ignored their words as she flipped her hair, quickly stalking closer. "Oh but it's true. We _all_ know it is. Right, guys?!" She called out over the crowd, narrowing her eyes as if daring anyone to stay silent.

The kids were quick to voice their agreements, spitting out their own insults here and there. The cheerleader nodded in satisfaction before turning back to the others. "You see? It's obvious. How are we ever supposed to see you freaks as anythings worth while, when your own parents didn't?" She said in a sickeningly sweet voice.

DJ shut his eyes tightly and turned his head away, screaming at himself not to listen to her babble as his fists clenched and unclenched at his side. Kari felt her heartbeat picking up at the girl's words, only to latch onto Damian's forearm, willing him to keep calm.

But the girl wasn't through there.

"I mean, let's think about it." She said, stepping away as she began to circle the trio. "Girl meets boy. Fall in love. Girl dates boy. Marry. Girl gets pregnant. Have little bundle of joy. Raise baby. Love baby. Happy little family. Happy little ending." She said simply, only to stop and sharply turn.

"But wait! What if there's a twist in our little tale? What if our little bundle of joy isn't very joyous?" She asked, shrugging her shoulders, a sinister smile creeping onto her face. "What if baby bundle is more trouble than it's worth?"

"Stop it." Violet whispered, wrapping her arms around herself.

"What if girl and boy can't be bother?"

"Shut up!" Kari snarled, hands shaking at her sides.

"What if those rotten little babies aren't even worth the time of day?!"

"Fuck off!" Damian roared.

She didn't stop. "Your own parents saw how worthless you freaks really are! You're garbage! You're dirt! And you'd all be better off dead! Even your own flesh and blood thought so!"

Nobody saw the fist swing forward until it connected with Tiffany's nose, sending her crashing to the floor screaming in pain. Damian barely even registered that the blood now dripping from the girl's nose was now staining his glove.

Instantly, everything exploded in cacophony.

Punches and blows flew in left and right. Kari kicked. Damian swung. Violet screamed. Shouts of dismay rang out. The sound of a whistle pierced the air, but it did little to deter the fighting. It wasn't until the teachers began to pull the teens apart that the pair noticed the moisture on their cheeks.

* * *

Oliver sighed as he hugged his knees tighter, shutting his eye as Frisk ran the wet towel over his cheek once more. The pair sat together on the curb outside the school, the leftover scraps they'd saved for later in their lunch boxes having been quickly gulped up. As per their usual routine, the only thing left to do was wait to get picked up by their siblings.

The only difference today was that they were the last kids there.

Scratch that, the other difference was that today, Frisk was cleaning raw egg off of her twin brother.

"Well, it could be worse. They could've gotten you too." Oliver said with a small smile. Frisk returned one of her own before a sigh made it way out of her. Picking the last bit of eggshell out of his hair, the girl set the towel down and glanced over at the frying pan lying next to them, which had also been chucked at them. "You'll have to return this to Culinary Class." She chimed in.

Oliver sighed before reaching over, placing the object into his backpack. "Yeah, I'll do it on Monday." He said softly, removing his egg-stained apron with a moan of disgust, plopping it into his bag as well.

Upon first view, you might mistake one twin for the other, but upon closer inspection, it was easy to tell them apart. Oliver had dark sandy hair that fell into his teal eyes. A horde of freckles lay scattered across his face, which was usually always holding a grin. Frisk's hair was slightly darker and only a bit longer. Though she still held the same mound of freckles, her eyes were a warm brown color. Yet she too was usually never missing a smile.

That is, except for today.

"You think something's wrong? Oliver asked, raising his head to look at his sister.

Frisk gazed around at the empty schoolyard, never used to seeing it so devoid of life. " I hope not." She finally replied softly.

The twins sat and waited for another ten minutes before the sound of people's voices began to ring in their ears. No, scratch that - people fighting. Lifting their heads, they could make out a group of people slowly approaching them, a sigh of relief quickly being shared between the two as they realized who they were.

Kari, Damian and their older brother Zephyr walked alongside each other while Violet and Harper walked a few paces behind them. And from the girls' faces, the conversation wasn't a pleasant one.

"Suspended? Are you freaking kidding me, guys?!"

"Zephyr, I'm telling you! It wasn't our fault!"

"Yeah, that little bitch had it coming!"

"Not helping, idiot!"

"Whatever! Look, Zephyr. You weren't there. You didn't see what happened. You didn't hear everything she was saying. I mean, almost the entire school was there watching her humiliate us! They already hate us enough without her badmouthing us everywhere she goes!"

"Right, because slugging her in the face is gonna get them to like you more. Oh, I see! Everything makes perfect sense now!"

Damian threw his hands up into the air in exasperation. "You know what? Forget it! The teachers didn't believe us. Why would you?" He muttered, stuffing his hands into his pockets as he angrily leaned up against one of the nearby lampposts.

Zephyr sighed and ran a hand through his long dark brown hair. The boy was tall compared to his other siblings, and his eyes were a startling blue. Kari walked over to stand by Damian while the girls huffed and took their seats next to the twins, realizing they would probably be there for a while.

"What happened?" Frisk asked, not really caring which of her sisters ended up answering.

Apparently it was Harper. "I don't know. Apparently DJ and Kari got into another fight and got suspended. They pulled us out of there so fast, I didn't even have time to change." She grumbled, unzipping her backpack to reveal her dance uniform. "I'll have to return this junk on Monday." She sighed.

Despite their similar ages, Harper and Violet looked _nothing_ alike. While Violet was skinny and tall, Harper was shorter and curvy. She had chocolate mocha skin that differed from Violet's pale ivory and her long curly black hair was nothing like Violet's straight blonde. Even their eyes were different. While Violet's were a deep brown, Harper's were silvery-gray. She was a pretty girl . . . and she knew it.

"A fight?" Oliver echoed, turning his head to glance at the pair behind them. Now that he was really looking at them, they did look a little scruffier than usual. Their hair was messy and their faces were scratched up slightly. The boy let out a small sigh, deciding to keep the egging incident to himself, quickly realizing they already had enough problems on their hands.

"Isn't that the second fight this month?" Frisk asked.

"Third, actually." Violet replied softly, straightening the glasses on her nose.

Zephyr let out another tired sigh before walking over to the pair, placing a hand on his little brother's shoulder. "Look, I didn't mean it like that. Of course I believe you, kids. It's just . . . " He trailed off slightly before continuing. "This is only going to make things worse for you guys." He explained.

"You think we don't know that?" Kari muttered, glaring down at the ground. "I hate this freaking town. I hate our school, and I _hate_ Hope Springs!' She snarled, spitting out the name of her _"home"_ for the last sixteen years.

At the name, the others cast their glances down towards the ground, a wave of depression rising from all of them. Hope Springs. Ha! Everything about the place was horrible. Even the name was a tease. There was nothing hopeful about the place. It was nothing but a cesspit of pity and rejection. Yet through it all, not once had they called Hope Springs by any other name. Not once had they accepted what it actually was.

An orphanage. A place where people threw away their unwanted garbage. A clearance bin in a retail store, filled with broken toys and old movies.

Kari sighed and wrapped her arms around herself. "I can't wait till we're eighteen." She sighed, turning back towards Damian. "Then we can finally escape this little Hell on Earth." She muttered.

Frisk bit her lip in thought as her sister's words left a bitter taste in her mouth. "Y . .. You're not gonna leave _us_ . . . . are you?" She asked quietly, voicing the thoughts of her brother and middle sisters.

The three eldest quickly shared looks with each other before walking over to the others. "Of course not, Baby Doll." Kari said softly, running a hand through the girl's hair. "As soon as we're old enough, we'll finally be able to help Zeph get enough money and then we're bustin' you all out." She said with a smirk. "Then it's off to Mexico!"

"What's even in Mexico?"

"Drugs, smugglers and disease!"

"Sounds perfect!" Damian chimed, throwing his arms into the air, the others cheering stupidly alongside him.

* * *

"So what're we gonna tell The Warden, Madam Douchebag?" DJ asked, dreading what would happen when they shared their little suspension with the Headmistress.

Kari shuddered. "Who knows? Anything we say's likely to get us a beating." She muttered. "Or worse, she'll make us eat the meatloaf from last Monday."

The thought made them both gag.

Zephyr placed a hand on their shoulders as the small surrogate family walked down the street along the forest. "Don't worry. I'll talk to her. I've known her since I was five." He said reassuringly, thankful his mother had dragged him to her job at Hope Springs more than once.

"You sure we can't just spend the night at your place?" Harper asked, glancing up at her older brother. Zephyr merely rolled his eyes at the prospect. "You kidding? If I had the food and space needed to house you morons, you still think you'd be living at Hope Springs?" He asked, letting out a sigh of his own that matched his siblings.

The sun was beginning to sink deeper into the sky, turning the clouds into a deep fiery orange color, pinks, yellows and reds splattered throughout. Light shone through the trees next to them, spilling out onto the sidewalk and nearby roadway, giving the illusion of walking on literal fire. A cool breeze blew through the air, stirring up the leaves that gathered on the ground, swirling them through the air in an intricate dance.

Frisk let out a small sigh of content as she closed her eyes, brown strands of hair licking against her cheek. Despite the hardships they all went through, the girl had to admit sunset was her favorite time of day, one she never took for granted.

Suddenly, the sound of shouts and loud barking sounded in the distance, slowly getting louder and louder. The family stopped walking and glanced at each other in confusion, only to blink in shock as they noticed the commotion down the street.

A group of three boys were currently giving chase to a small white dog, throwing rocks, cans and whatever else they could pick up as they ran. Sharply turning, the dog yapped as it crossed the street, disappearing into the line of trees and bushes. That didn't stop the boys, however, as they continued to give chase.

"HEY!" Frisk yelled, quickly falling into a sprint as well as she pushed past the trees. "Stop!" She shouted, ignoring the shouts of her family.

"What the hell does she think she's doing? This is Mt. Ebott. Nobody goes to Mt. Ebott!" Damian yelled as they quickly ran after her, except for Harper, who merely stared up at the trees. "Wait, we're actually doing this? I mean, I love Frisk and all. . . . but not _this_ much." She muttered, only to yelp as Violet grabbed her arm and yanked her forward.

"Frisk, stop!" Kari yelled, pushing past the tree branches and brambles as they continued to run through the undergrowth.

"Come on!" The girl merely replied as she continued to run even faster, the barking growing louder and louder with each passing moment.

The group shared exasperated looks, but continued on nevertheless.

Suddenly, the three boys exploded from the nearby bushes, screaming and shouting as they began to trip over themselves, quickly sprinting back down the mountain, shrieking in fear the entire time.

The kids stopped running and stared off where the bullies had disappeared before Damian shrugged. "Well, problem solved!" He called, taking a step to go back down the hill, only for Zephyr to grab the back of his shirt and pull him onward.

Frisk pushed past the bushes where the kids had come from, fully expecting to find a growling dog. She blinked and scrunched her nose in confusion at the sight before her.

It was a small clearing with five or six different tents lined around it, a small circle of rocks and worn-down wood piled in the center of the space. Different bags and boxes were scattered across the floor, the ripped tent flaps blowing gently with every breeze.

The girl stared at the sight before her, taking notice of her siblings pushing past the bushes behind her.

"Whoa. What happened here?" Harper asked.

Zephyr shook his head and furrowed his brow. "I don't know. I didn't even know people were allowed on Mt. Ebott."

"They're not." Kari said, stepping forward. Kneeling down, she grabbed one of the tent flaps and ran her thumb along the rips and tears. "But they were at some point. This stuff has to be years old." She explained.

The others warily crept forward, slowly inspecting the rest of the gear. "Well . . . what happened to these people? Something tells me they wouldn't just leave all this stuff behind without a reason."

Zephyr inspected a small knife from one of the bags. "Who knows? There's a reason people aren't allowed on this mountain. There's all sorts of bears and wild animals around here. Maybe one of them got to this group." He suggested, placing the knife into his pocket.

Harper quickly stood up. "Well, not that that _doesn't_ sound pleasant, but I'd rather not have to share my limbs with a coyote, thank you very much."

The eldest nodded his head as he stood up. "Harper's right. We should probably get out of here."

Damian smirked and elbowed the boy in the arm. "Come on, Zeph. Where's your sense of adventure?" He asked,

"Right below my c _ommon_ sense, which is telling me staying on a mountain filled with ravenous creatures at sundown maybe _isn't_ the best idea."

Kari rolled her eyes, inspecting a small pistol from the ground. "Oh come now, we'll be out of here before dark." She reassured him, noticing a small box of bullets half buried in the dirt along with a brown cowboy hat. "This is the most exciting thing we've done all month. Besides, any excuse to not be at Hope Springs is good enough for me, even if it means chancing getting mauled by a bear." She smirked, plopping the hat onto her head for fun, folding her arms across her chest and sticking her tongue out at the others, who quickly exclaimed how ridiculous she looked.

"Right, I'll be sure to tell my _girlfriend_ that when they find our corpses. Sorry, Thea. We just didn't have anything better to do." Zephyr muttered.

"That's the spirit." DJ smirked, wrapping his arms around his brother's shoulders while the others couldn't help their giggles. The younger boy stooped down to pick up a piece of cloth on the ground. Upon further inspection, he noticed it was a plain red bandanna. He shrugged before tying it around his neck.

Frisk's eyes scanned over the campsite once more before falling on a dark shadow farther up. "Hey guys. What's over there?" She asked, rising to her feet once more.

The others lifted their heads to inspect it as well. "I don't know." Kari finally voiced. 'Let's go check it out." She said, rising to her feet, the others voicing their agreements as they walked over, well . . . all except for Zephyr, who was currently rubbing the bridge of his nose. "I swear, those little . . ." He muttered, walking over as well.

As they got closer, they realized it was actually the mouth of a cave, different vines and ivy lining the outer walls. The kids stared at the gaping hole in front of them, speechless as to what to say next.

Damian was the first to snap out of it as he latched onto Kari's wrist. "Come on, let's be stupid and irresponsible!" He said with a large grin, leading the girl inside. Zephyr let out a sigh. "I'll go make sure they don't die. Keep your butts here." He growled before walking in as well.

The remaining four kids glanced at each other before walking in as well.

The temperature instantly dropped at least ten degrees as they stepped inside, the only bit of light seeping in from the cracks above their heads from centuries of rain and wind. Rocks littered the floor, tripping everyone up at least once as they ventured. The walls were jagged and rough, the stones hard to the touch as they ran their hands over them. Different vines and moss crept up the walls or grew along the floor.

"Man, this place is huge!" Harper breathed, the others silently nodding their agreements.

Damian narrowed his eyes as he caught sight of something a little ways off on the floor. Walking over, he noticed it was a huge gaping hole, at least fifty feet wide. "Whoa! Hey guys, check it out!" He called,the small cracks forming underneath his feet going unnoticed.

Walking over, the others gasped at the large abyss created in the ground, inching as close as they could. "Can you see what's down there?" Oliver asked as he and his sister inched closer.

Damian leaned forward slightly while Zephyr held onto his arm. "Uhhh . . . . . no, not really. Everything just looks black."

"How far down do you think it goes?" Harper asked, nobody noticing the cracks along the ground slowly getting bigger with every passing second.

Violet shrugged her shoulders. "Who knows? This is either just a random hole, or a hollow opening to something. either way, it's rare for one to be in a mountain like this." The girl explained, the stone at their feet chipping away.

Frisk scrunched her face and leaned closer. "Weird. Hey you think there's anything down there?"

Kari shrugged her shoulders. "I doubt i-AHHHHHHH!" She screamed as the stone underneath her caved away, six more identical screams ringing out as everyone found themselves plummeting down into the darkness.

The light above their heads grew smaller and smaller as they continued to scream, the wind whipping their hair back and forth, their clothes billowing out around them as they fell faster and faster, farther and farther. The rock walls around them grew darker and darker in color as they fell deeper with every passing second.

They shut their eyes and braced themselves as the walls turned dark. Suddenly, they hit the ground with a large _THUD_ , the world instantly fading to black. But in those last seconds, right before they hit, they could have sworn the ground was . . . . yellow?

* * *

 **Well there you go! The first chapter in this new series of mine! Don't forget to leave a comment. Anyways, you'll get more backstory and explanation as the story progresses but for now . . . HERE YOU GO!**

 **Stay tuned for the next installment of SEVEN**


	2. Chapter 2: Fallen Down On Your Face

**Chapter 2: Fallen Down . . . On your Face**

The sound of her heartbeat thumping in her ears was the sound Frisk woke to. She let out a groan as she cracked open her eyes, squeezing them tight again as a harsh beam of light shone through. She moaned and turned her head away. The fact that she didn't _seem_ to be dead filled her with a new sense of determination as she warily twitched her fingers. _Alright, those are good._ She thought to herself as she curled her hand into a fist and flexed her wrist.

After a moment of testing out the rest of her body, the girl didn't detect any broken bones, merely a massive headache. With a grunt of effort, she pushed herself up into a sitting position, placing a hand to her throbbing forehead as she craned her neck up towards the sky . . . or at least, the small portion of sky _wayyyyyyyyy_ up there.

She blinked in shock for a moment before she remembered she wasn't the only one to fall. "Guys?" She called, whipping her head around.

Farther off, she noticed the others were sprawled out on the ground - no, on a bed of flowers? Quickly bending down onto her hands and knees, she crawled over to the nearest body, which happened to be Zephyr. Placing her ear onto his chest, a large wave of relief flooded through her at the steady _thumping_ that filled her ears.

"Zephyr?" She called, gently nudging him back and forth.

After a few more _gentle_ nudges (a kick to the ribs), the boy finally came to. He groaned and placed a hand to his head, cracking open his eyes. They quickly snapped wide open as he recalled what happened, causing him to bolt upright. He panted heavily, only to pause as he caught sight of Frisk, placing a hand on her cheek. "You okay, kid?" He asked gently, the girl giving a nod of her head.

He let out a small sigh before shakily rising to his feet. Wincing slightly as he placed weight on his leg, he turned back to Frisk "Go on and try to wake you siblings." He instructed, kneeling down next to Damian.

Frisk nodded and ran over to the others while Zephyr let out a breath at feeling his brother's steady pulse.

The girl made quick work of rousing everyone awake, loud groans and moans of soreness filling the air as they slowly came to their senses. Damian's eyes popped open before he glanced around the cavern, making eye contact with each of his siblings before he fell back down onto his back, pumping his arms into the air. "Yes! We're alive! That's great!"

Violet lifted her head towards the sky, adjusting her glasses once more. "We're also at the bottom of a cavernous pit."

" . . . . . . that's _less_ great!"

Kari furrowed her brow, running her fingers over the fuzzy flower petals. "We also somehow managed to land in a pile of flowers, which seemed to be what saved our lives."

"WHOO! Back to great again!"

The girl rolled her eyes before slowly rising to her feet. "Alright, new problem. How do we get out of here?"

The others shared baffled looks as they rose to their feet. "Umm . . . nobody happens to have rock-climbing gear in their backpacks, do they?" Harper asked.

Zephyr let out a sigh and narrowed his eyes in thought. "Alright, maybe next time when the big brother warns about going up the mysterious mountain and entering the deep, dark, menacing cave, we _might_ HEED HIS WARNINGS!" He growled at the others.

DJ shrugged his shoulders. "Yeah, but we're the younger siblings. It's like _our jobs_ to ignore you." He explained, the others murmuring their agreements, to which Zephyr face-palmed. Taking a deep breath, the only _legal_ adult took a deep breath and instantly calmed down. "Alright, look. Our main priority right now is to find some water and shelter to ride this out. Eventually people will notice we're missing and come looking for us. It's only a matter of time." He reasoned.

Kari rolled her eyes. "Oh please. They'll probably be throwing parades and pep rallies at school in celebration."

That received her a prompt slap upside the head.

Clicking her tongue in annoyance as she rubbed her now sore head, she gazed around the dark cave walls. As she did, her eyes made out a narrow path leading to what looked like . . . a doorway? Were there actually people here at one point? Nevertheless, she pointed to it and called her siblings over. "Maybe we can find some edible plants in there or something?" She ventured.

DJ gave her a skeptical look. "Fine, but I am _not_ getting poisoned down here. Whatever we find, Zephyr eats it first."

"Thanks."

The teen winked at his brother as the group slowly filed into the doorway.

The room was black, and I don't just mean black as in 12:02 in the morning with no light except for that little glow of the moon outside, I mean _'the moon has just exploded and you can't see shit!'_ black. The seven had to to hold their hands (which they couldn't even see) in front of their faces to keep from tripping. Which, I might add, didn't help considering they all tripped at least once.

Finally, the darkness around them began to lighten up as a bright source of white light could be seen up ahead. Glancing at each other, the group continued onward until the light cleared to be a small sunspot on the ground, the light leaking in from a crack above their heads. But the light wasn't what froze the teens in their tracks. No . . . it was what was in the _center_ of the spotlight.

"What the fuck is this shit?!"

Violet elbowed her brother in the side at his language, but she couldn't' really say she didn't feel the same. None of them could . . . well except for Frisk and Oliver, who looked like they were about ready to run over and hug the little thing.

A little ways off, sitting in a small patch of sunlight was a large golden flower. It had a dark green stem with leaves and bright yellow petals. Everything about the plant seemed innocent enough . . . . except for the _face,_ which was much _too_ innocent. That, and the fact it was a _frikkin flower_! Why the hell did it have a face?!"

"Are you guys sure we didn't die?" Harper whispered.

The flower whipped it _head?_ around and caught sight of them, his face instantly lighting up. "Oh, visitors!" It exclaimed happily.

The family shared glances with each other before reluctantly stepping forward. "Uhh. . . hello there, little . . . talking . . . _flower?_ " Kari said uncertainly.

"Hi there!" He replied cheerfully. "I'm Flowey! Flowey the Flower!" The plant exclaimed happily.

DJ rolled his eyes. "Wow. Did you come up with that all by yourself?" He muttered, Zephyr kicking him in the shin, to which he earned a loud yelp of pain.

The flower, appropriately names Flowey inspected the small group before his smile returned. "Hmm . . . you guys are new to the Underground arent'cha?" He asked, the kids slowly nodding their heads. "Golly, then you lot must be so confused. Someone out to teach you how things work around here!"

"Did that sound like a threat to you?" Kari whispered into DJ's ear, the teen shrugging his shoulders with a baffled look.

The plant shrugged his _leaves_ and winked at them. "Well then. Guess little ol' me will have to do." He said before leaning forward. "Ready? Here we go!" He exclaimed happily.

The group turned to glance at each other. "Ready?" Harper echoed. "Ready for wha-Holy SHIT!" She screamed, the others letting out cries of shock as they realized they were now floating at least two feet off the ground, a glowing light shining from the center of their chests.

"We can fly? That's awesome!" Oliver shouted, a large grin spreading onto his face.

Kari stared down at the glowing yellow light in her chest, watching as it floated out to hover over her abdomen, slowly taking the rough form of a heart. "Uhh . . . this is weird, right?" She called, a loud chorus of agreement ringing out.

"See those hearts?!" The kids jumped, having forgotten the talking abomination of nature was there. "That's your soul, the very culmination of your being!" He explained with a sweet smile.

Harper rolled her eyes. "Our souls, huh? So then, why does DJ have one?"

The teen threw her a glare as he swung his arms in a swimming motion, his orange heart flickering angrily with each stroke. "You're lucky I don't know how to motor this thing, or you'd be _so_ done for!"

Flowey threw the group a strange glance before shaking it out once more, a smile growing once again. "Your soul starts off weak, but it grow strong if you gain a lot of LV!" He explained, continuing as he noticed the confused looks he was getting. "What's LV stand for? Why _LOVE_ of course! You want some love, don't you?" He asked.

"Ehh. . . " Damian groaned, only for Zephyr to latch onto him wrist, turning back to the flower. "If you'll excuse us for one second." He said politely before grabbing the others, quickly forming a mid-air huddle.

"I don't trust this guy for a second. A second!" DJ muttered, throwing a glare at the creature, who was _still_ smiling!

Violet rolled her eyes, trying to peel her gaze away from the purple light at her chest that flickered brighter momentarily with every beat of her heart. "Care to name a reason? Because he's happy? Because he seems content with his life? Because he seems better off than you?"

"Uhh, to name a _few_!"

The others rolled their eyes, Oliver folding his arms across his chest. "Well I like him."

Kari gave him a deadpanned look. "Oli, you like _everyone_."

The kid pouted. "So?"

Zephyr shook his head. "So what do you think? Should we do what he says?" He asked the others.

Kari bit her lip in thought before letting out a sigh. "I guess I don't see why not. I mean, it's not like we have a _real_ reason to distrust him." She pointed out.

"Uhh . . how 'bout the fact he's a _fucking_ talking flower!" Damian shouted, Zephyr whacking him upside the head. "Must you curse so much?" The man growled. DJ folded his arms. "I'm stressed! Forgive me if my way of coping isn't good enough for you." He grumbled, his brother resisting the urge to groan in annoyance.

Nevertheless, the boy glanced back at the others, who each nodded in agreement. After all, it was a flower. What harm could it do?

Floating back over to the waiting flower, he cracked a grin once more. "So, you want some love" He asked again.

Kari shrugged. "Sure, I guess."

"Don't worry. I'll share some with you" He said with a wink. Suddenly, small glowing white pellet appeared in the air behind the plant. "Down here, love is shared through . . . little white . . . .friendliness pellets." He said hesitantly.

DJ rubbed the bridge of his nose. "So that's a thing now? That's . . . . awesome." He muttered.

"You guys ready? Go ahead and get as many as you can!" Flowey instructed, the pellets shooting forward.

Kari gasped in pain as the pellets rammed into her, sending waves of agony throughout her body. She was vaguely of the others' screams as well as she blinked the dots away from her eyes, focusing on steadying her breathing. Doubling over, they clutched the glowing hearts in front of them, which now had many cracks in them. Kari whipped her head up. "What the hell, man?!" She snarled, glaring at the plant, only to gasp as she caught sight of him.

His smile had melted away into a wicked grin, his soulless black eyes filled with malice and greed. "You IDIOTS!" He snarled. "In this world, it's kill or be killed! Why would ANYONE waste an opportunity like this?!" More pellets sprang up behind him, spinning violently around them. " **DIE!"** He screeched, the pellets shooting forward.

Kari and Zephyr pushed the girls and the twins down to the ground before the remaining three split up, the pellets slamming into the back wall. Flowey glared at them. "Hey! Didn't anyone ever teach you manners?" More pellets sprouted up, along with many thorned vines. "When someone tells you to die, you DIE!" He snarled.

"Well maybe you should pick some easier prey!" DJ growled, ducking underneath the barrage of pellets that shot towards him. "Or at least some that don't take self-defense classes!" He snorted, leaping away from the vine that swung towards his head.

"Yeah! Zephyr, for once, I don't hate you for making us take those stupid things!' Kari shouted, avoiding another group of deadly seeds.

The eldest rolled his eyes, leaping away from the bullets as they shot into the ground. "Great. I told you those classes would come in handy. Though I never assumed they'd be used for this." He deadpanned, skidding against the hard stone floor.

Zephyr reached into his pocket and pulled out the knife from the campsite, slashing one of the nearby vines before leaping away from the oncoming round of pellets. Diving back towards the ground, he growled as he noticed a horde of the bullets were now following him. Twisting around in the air, he flew towards Flowey, who had to duck underneath his own pellets. "Hey! Could you maybe keep your deaths in a confined area, thank you very much!"

Harper and Violet shared looks with each other before nodding their heads. Floating back up into the air, they felt small hands wrap around their ankles. "Wait, where're you going?" Frisk asked as she and her brother held them back from the battle.

"I'm not about to let them fight this alone. Besides, I am _not_ giving DJ the chance to gloat over how he 'saved us' or whatever." Harper growled, yanking her foot free of her brother's grip before flying up alongside her older sister.

Violet yanked her foot free as well and turned back to the twins. "Stay here." She instructed, letting out a small groan of hesitation before joining the battle as well.

"Oooo! Now things are getting interesting!" Flowey said with a sinister smirk, watching the girls join the battle. "But now it's time to wrap this up."

Kari dodged another round of pellets, watching them slam into the nearby stone walls once more, only to yell in pain as a vine slammed into the side of her head, knocking her down to the ground.

"Kari!" Damian yelled, only to give a shout of his own as a round of pellets slammed into his chest, sending him tumbling down to the ground as well. Frisk and Oliver shared fearful looks as they watched Zephyr get knocked down as well, Violet and Harper quickly succumbing to the plant's attacks soon after.

Kari groaned in pain, noticing the large cracks in her shaking soul, the others fairing no better. Flowey gave a small giggle as he inched closer. "Like I said before. In this world, it's kill or be killed." Before he could even summon more pellets, Oliver and Frisk charged out, stepping in between the flower and their family, glaring at the plant before them.

"L-Leave them alone!" Frisk shouted, trying her best to sound confident like her sister.

Oliver nodded. "Yeah, or. . . or y-you'll be sorry."

Flowey stared at the twins before letting out a vicious cackle. "Oh! Oh this is _too_ good!" He exclaimed. "But enough games. I'm tired of this. and I'm tired of all you!" More pellets sprouted up from the air, surrounding the family once more. Kari and Damian grabbed the twins and pulled them back while Zephyr shielded the others.

" **DIE!"**

Kari shut her eyes tightly and ducked her head away, feeling the others around her do the same as they prepared for the final stab of pain. Only no such feeling ever came. Instead, they were greeted to the sound of a shout of pain. Opening their eyes, they watched as the remnants of a large fireball disappeared into the air, Flowey now nowhere to be seen.

"What a miserable creature, torturing such poor innocent children."

Seven pairs of eyes whipped around to face the newcomer, the sight making their jaws drop.

Standing before them was a creature unlike any they'd seen before. She was what appeared to be a white goat. She had long ears and small horns protruding from her forehead. She had vibrant maroon eyes that stood out against the deep purple dress she wore that stretched all the way down to the ground. On her chest was an emblem of three triangles underneath a winged symbol.

Her narrowed eyes softened as she turned back to the children who were still lying on the floor, eyes as wide as saucers. "Ah, do not be afraid, my children. I am-"

" **AHHHHH!"**

The woman leapt backwards in shock as she was greeted with seven different screams, each filled with the same levels of terror and/or frustration. Seriously? Another freaking abomination of nature? Wasn't the demon flower enough?"

The woman could merely stare at the screaming group for a moment before regaining her senses, taking a gentle step forward.

Instantly, the screaming ceased as Zephyr raised his arm, aiming the knife at the strange woman. "Get back!" He snarled at her. Kari became vaguely aware of the fact that one of Zephyr's arms was now wrapped protectively around her, shielding the others from view.

Normally she would protest such a thing, saying how she didn't need him protecting her anymore, but she was in _no_ position to say such things. After all, the girl could barely even see straight through all the pain she was currently in. Blood dripped down the cuts around her body, her clothes torn in more than one place as exhaustion ebbed away at her last remaining ounces of strength.

Glancing over, she noticed nobody was fairing much better, especially the boys, who were just as banged up as she was, the others having been spared the brunt force of Flowey's attacks. Even now, Kari noticed Zephyr's arm shaking as he continued to point the knife threateningly at the goat lady.

Upon seeing their aggressiveness, the woman instantly took a step back, holding up her paws as a sign of surrender. "Please, it is alright. I will not hurt you." She said in a calm and gentle voice.

Zephyr scoffed. "Please, the last thing to say something like that nearly killed us. I think you'll excuse us if we're a little more hesitant to be trusting anymore _monsters_. He spat out, glaring heatedly at the woman in front of him.

She stared at the boy currently wielding a knife against her before turning her gaze on the ones behind him. Immediately, she watched him shift positions, blocking the shivering kids behind him from her view. Instantly, she understood his anger. He was protecting the children. And right now, the only threat to them he saw was her.

She quickly took another step back. "I promise it is all right." She said quietly. "I will not hurt you or your family." She paused, taking notice of the blood pooling on the ground underneath them. "Please, you are all injured." She lifted a paw and summoned a small green flame. "I can heal you." She explained, hoping the boy would drop his weapon.

Kari stared at the woman in front of them, taking in the words she was saying through what her eyes portrayed. Unlike Flowey, who'd instantly given off a creepy vibe, this woman . . . . this woman was different. The way she moved. The way she spoke. The way she looked at them.

It was genuine.

Lifting a shaky hand, Kari placed it on Zephyr's arm, the boy casting her a sideways glance. "Zeph . . . I think . . . I think it's alright." She said softly.

Before the boy could protest, she continued. "She's seems genuine, Zeph. Plus if she _can_ heal us, it's definitely something we could use right now." She explained. "Besides, it's not like we have the strength to stop her from doing otherwise." She added with a frown, her next words coming out as a quiet whisper. " _She_ might not know, but I know you enough to tell when you're bluffing." She cast his shaking arm one last glance, Zephyr following her eyes.

After a moment, he let out a sigh and dropped his arm back down to the ground. "Alright." He finally spoke, turning back to the woman with a glare. "But you'd better not try anything." He growled out.

The woman simply gave a nod of her head. "I promise I won't."

A moments hesitation passed before Zephyr gave a small nod. Stepping forward, the woman knelt down in front of the group and closed her eyes extending out her palms, which began to glow a bright green. A small green flame slowly began to twirl and slip around the group, their eyes shining a bright green as her magic entered their bodies.

Finally, the flame flickered out, the injuries having now disappeared, only leaving faded, barely noticeable scars. Kari blinked and stared down at her hands, all of her pain now gone. The kids laughed to themselves, the tingling feeling the magic left slowly ebbing away.

Zephyr stared at his own hands for a moment before lifting his gaze, meeting the woman's gentle eyes. "Thank you." He said softly, watching her nod her head slowly, a warm smile adorning her face as she extended a paw, helping the boy to his feet.

Twisting around, Zephyr helped the others up as the woman smoothed out her dress. "Oh, apologies. I have yet to tell you all my name." She exclaimed. "I am Toriel, caretaker of the Ruins. I come to this place every day to see if someone has fallen down, and imagine my surprise when I see not one newcomer, but _seven_." She said with a smile.

Kari gave her a small smile of her own. "Hello. Sorry about all that before. My name's Kari." She said, placing a hand on her chest before gesturing over to DJ. "This is my friend, Damian and our siblings, Violet, Harper, Oliver, Frisk, and Zephyr." She said, gesturing to each person as she called their names.

Toriel nodded her head, smiling brightly at the group. "Hello, young ones." She greeted before a thoughtful look appeared on her face. "You must be tired. Come, I will guide you through the catacombs." She announced, extending out a hand.

The family shared looks before shrugging their shoulders. After all, it's not like they had anywhere else to go. Reaching up, Frisk dropped her hand into Toriel's warm paw, linking up with Oliver on her other hand. Kari and the others smiled at the scene before allowing Toriel to lead them through the large door ahead.

As they passed through the entrance way, they were greeted to a large room with deep purple walls, two winding staircases leaving up to a second level. As Toriel led them over to the steps, Kari noticed her youngest sister stare at the spot between the stairs, a confused look appearing on the small child's face.

"What is it, Frisk?" She called, catching the others' attentions.

The girl turned back to her sister. "You don't see that golden light over there?" She asked, lifting her hand out of her brother's grip as she touched the open air. Kari and the others shared confused glances.

"Uh . . . I think Frisk might've hit her head harder than we first thought." Damian muttered as they continued up the stairs, the girl letting out a little huff of frustration, if only to hide her slight shiver of fear. As she had placed her hand into the glowing gold light, a wave of emotions crashed into her, the most prominent being a feeling of determination. Though, once the wave died out, she was left with a slight sense of dread, her fear of the unknown experience dampening her emotion.

Though realizing her family already had enough problems to deal with at the moment, the child let it be and continued to walk forward.

Entering the next room, the group stared in confusion at the sleek silver buttons protruding from the floor, the door on the other side of the room shut tightly. Toriel let go of Frisk's hand and walked into the center of the room, turning back around to face the family. "Welcome to your new home, children." She said with a smile before turning towards the buttons, never noticing the frowns that were quickly shared throughout the group at her choice words.

"Allow me to educate you in the operation of the Ruins." She continued before stepping towards the buttons. Walking across the second and fourth rows of buttons, she made her way over to a small yellow switch attached to the back wall and flipped it. Beside her, the large door slowly creaked open.

"The Ruins are full of puzzles." She explained, turning back towards the group. "Ancient fusions between diversions and doorkeys. One must solve them to move from room to room. I'm sure you will all get used to them. Please take the time to adjust to them." She said gently before walking through the now open door.

Damian walked over to the buttons, gently pressing his foot down on one of the upright buttons, a soft clicking sound drifting into the air as it sank into the floor. "Okayyyy . . . anybody else find this a little weird?" He asked, turning back to the others. "I mean, what kind of place just has random puzzles for no apparent reason?"

Harper shrugged her shoulders. "The same place with demon flowers and strange goat ladies?"

". . . . . touche."

Oliver caught sight of a small grey sign on the wall, cocking his head in curiosity as he walked over. "Hey, guys!" He called, the others catching onto what had grabbed his attention.

"What does it say?" Frisk asked, lifting her head to look at her siblings, realizing neither her nor her brother were tall enough to read the sign.

Kari wished the kids would grow more. They were surprisingly small for their age. Leaning closer, the words carved in quickly became clear. " _Only the fearless may proceed. Brave ones, foolish ones. Both not walk the middle road."_

Damian rolled his eyes. "And your lucky number are . . ." He snarked, walking into the room up ahead, the others following behind him.

The next room was much larger than the last. It stretched down to the end of the hall, moss and vines growing up the walls, a trickling stream cutting through the sea of purple.

Toriel turned back to the humans. "TO make progress here, you will need to trigger several switches. Do not fear, though. I have labelled the ones that you need to flip." She said with another smile before walking over to the far side of the room.

Shrugging their shoulders, the group walked over the small wooden bridge connecting them to the rest of the room. Against the wall, another small yellow switch stood, only this one had many yellow arrows around it.

The kids gave each other _'seriously?'_ looks before Violet walked over and flipped the switch.

Walking over another bridge, two more switches could be seen on the wall. Once again, there were yellow lines and text surrounding one switch. DJ let out a sigh and walked over. Tempted to flick the other switch, if merely to see what would happen, the teen refrained and flicked the marked switch.

"Splendid! I'm very proud of you all." Toriel cheered, cupping her hands together. "Come. Let us move on to the next room."

Kari shrugged her shoulders. "Well, can't say she isn't encouraging." She stated, the others murmuring their agreements as they walked into the next room with the lady.

"Hey, Toriel. I've been meaning to ask you." Kari stated, the woman turning her head to look at the teen. "What is it, my child?" She asked sweetly.

The girl cocked a brow at the strange nickname, but blew it off. "That flower, the one you saved us from earlier . . . what was his deal?" She asked.

"Yeah, that dude was nuts." DJ muttered, folding his arms across his chest. "Though to be fair, craziness is different for everybody. Some people hear voices, some people see things, others go on magical homicidal rampages as they try to shoot you with little white _'friendliness pellets'."_

Toriel let out a sigh and shook her head. "He was merely _one_ of the monsters you will meet." She stated, continuing as she received several confused looks. "As humans living in the Underground, monsters may attack you." She explained. "You will need to be prepared for this situation."

She led them further into the room, where they quickly noticed it was not as empty as they'd first thought. Against the side wall was a small cotton-stuffed dummy.

"However, worry not!' Toriel said happily. "The process is simple. When you encounter a monster, you'll simply need to strike up a friendly conversation."

She was instantly met by a bout of laughter. Glancing over, she now noticed Damian trying to stifle his laughs against his hand. "W-What?" He choked out through his chortles.

"Stall for time and I will come to resolve the conflict."

"H-how would that even work?" He snorted, only to let out a small yelp as Kari pushed him forward, his glare merely earning him a gesture to the dummy.

"Ugg . . ." He sighed over dramatically before walking over to the dummy, craning is neck to stare down at it. "Hello, Mr. Dummy. My name is DJ, and even though we've just met, if you have a spare noose lying around I'd really appreciate it." He monotoned. "No? Oh, okay. Thanks anyways. So how's the Mrs? Uh-huh. Really? And how many kids will that make? Wow, how're you gonna pay to feed all those little dust bunnies?"

The dummy fell over.

Damian turned back to the others. "There, you see? Now he's depressed. You could have warned me about bringing up his monetary issues."

Zephyr slammed the palm of his hand into his forehead with a groan while the others stifled their laughs behind their hands. Toriel merely blinked in surprise before her smile returned. "Well . . . I guess that works. Very good." She turned away once more. "Come along now."

Kari and DJ fist-bumped, earning them a whack upside the head by their brother as they entered the next room.

"There's another puzzle in this room." Toriel explained. "I wonder if you all can solve it." She said before walking farther into the hall. The group was just about to follow her when a large white creature leapt out in front of them, eliciting small screams of shock.

The creature was white and resembled a frog, only it was much bigger than what the humans were used to. After all, it was almost as big as the twins. Immediately, a long pink tongue shot out of the frog's mouth, Kari leaping out of the way as it slammed into the ground where her feet had been.

"Hey! Watch where you swing that thing!" She shouted, only to receive a face-full of tongue, the force knocking her onto the floor. She let out a disgusted groan before wiping the saliva off of her cheek. "Alright, I've been attacked by a demon flower, saved by a magical goat lady and now I've just been molested by a frog. This is literally the strangest day of my life."

Damian and Zephyr glared at the creature, leaping away as its tongue shot out for another round of attacks. Seeing this coming, Damian reached out and latched onto the tongue, yanking the monster forward, barely registering the fact that the glowing orange heart from before was now hovering in front of his chest yet again.

The froggit soared forward, Zephyr slamming it back down to the floor. Despite its outward appearance, the frog was tougher than it looked. Hopping back to its feet, it turned to face the humans once more.

Damian reached down and pulled Kari up as the three turned back around, ready to attack when Oliver raised his hands. "Stop!" He shouted.

"What the heck, kid? This thing's basically _asking_ for a beat-down." DJ growled out.

"More like you're just looking for an excuse to beat something up." Harper sniped, checking her nails casually.

"That too!"

Oliver rolled his eyes. "Didn't you hear Toriel? We're supposed to talk to it." He explained, yelping as Zephyr pulled him out of the line of fire of a trail of flies. "Yeah, when the only threat the enemy posed was death by cotton balls! This is a real monster, kid."

The little boy yanked his arm out of his brother's grasp. "Just because they're monsters doesn't mean they don't have feelings." He stated before walking over to the creature.

"Do you watch _any_ movies? At all? You're gonna be that idiot we always scream at as they do something stupid that's likely to get them killed. And we're always mad because _nobody_ in real life is dumb enough to do something like that. Well, congrats kid! Today, you've proved the cinematic world correct!" Damian called, Oliver merely ignoring the teen.

Instead, the small boy faced the froggit with a large smile on his face as he gave a small wave. "Hi. I'm Oliver. You look great today." He said cheerfully.

The froggit gave him a small look of confusion that clearly meant the words were gibberish to him, but he blushed anyways, the kids behind him quickly doing a double take at the scene. Suddenly, Toriel came into view, her eyes burning with warning as she glared at the creature before her. The froggit gave a small fearful ribbit before hopping out of sight.

The woman said nothing else as she led the group farther down the hallway, but not before they stared over at Oliver with wide eyes, the kid merely giving a shrug of his shoulders as he walked along. Through the commotion, the group immediately forgot about the puzzle that was seemingly in the other room until they came across what looked to be a sea of sharp pointed spikes.

"Do you have to walk this every day?!" Kari asked in a shocked voice.

"Yeah, why would you even want to walk back there anyways? Is there like a pharmacy or a fried chicken shack or something? Cause this seems like a lot of work." Damian pointed out, a baffled look on his face. Even the others had to admit, it seemed like a pretty frivolous task.

"I find no problems in simply wishing to go for some quiet walks." Toriel explained with a gentle smile.

"Yeah, I'm all for walks and whatnot, but I'm just saying. Spiked pathways are where I draw the line. You got to have standards." The boy quipped, placing a hand on his hip.

"This is the puzzle, but. . . ." Toriel trailed off as she stared at the spikes ahead. "Here, link hands for a moment." She instructed, wrapping her paw around Frisk's small hand once more.

The group have each other skeptical looks, but did as they were told. Harper glanced over to the side, watching the still, clear water that surrounded the spike covered bridge." Uh . . . you sure there isn't an easier way to get to the other side?"

"I am certain. The bridge is the only way."

She cast the woman a skeptical look. "You sure? Cause I don't know about you, but we're pretty good swimmers. I'm sure it wouldn't be too hard to cross through the water."

"No. I am quite certain the bridge is-"

"Actually. I don't even think we'd need to swim." Violet noted, adjusting her glasses once more. "That water looks perfectly shallow and-

"We're crossing the bridge!"

The group blinked in slight shock at the usually calm woman, who quickly cleared her throat. "Please, just follow me." She said softly before taking a step forward. The kids prepared for her to yell out in pain, only to watch as the spikes shot back down into the floor.

Keeping their hands linked, the eight slowly made their way through the spiked maze with more than one sweaty hand. Finally, they stepped back onto solid stone, the palpable tension in the room quickly dissolving. "Puzzles seem a little too dangerous . . . . and stressful for right now." Toriel added, quickly moving onto the next room.

After walking through a particularly long hallway, as well as enduring a seemingly endless supply of complaints and whines from DJ and Harper about how long the hallway was, followed by two slaps upside the head by their brother, they made it to the end of the room, everyone - including Toriel - breathing a sigh of relief.

Suddenly, the woman stopped and turned around to face the group. She was silent for a moment, an unsure look adorning her face as she seemed to debate something silently. Kari glanced at her siblings, who each returned the same confused looks. "Umm . . .Toriel? Are you okay?" She asked.

Instantly, the woman snapped out of whatever state she was in and gave them a warm smile. "Of course. Though, there is something I must ask of you." She stated, watching the skeptical, distrusting looks pass onto their faces . . . well, except for the twins, who were still as happy as could be.

"Umm . . . sure. What is it?" Kari answered warily.

Toriel let out a sigh and folded her hands together. "I must attend to some important business, and I must request you all stay here for a while." She explained. "It pains me to do this, but it is necessary my children." She said sadly.

Harper leaned over to Violet. " _How_ long have we known this lady?" She whispered.

"Please remain here, for it is dangerous to explore the Ruins by yourself if you are not familiar with the layout or the puzzles." She stated, watching as the kids nodded their heads. She turned her head away and let out a small _hum_ of thought before perking once more. "Oh, I have an idea. Here." She said, reaching behind her.

She pulled out a small gray cell phone and dropped it into Kari's hands. "Just call me if you all need anything." She said.

Damian glanced over the girl's shoulder, staring at the phone with an incredulous look. "There's reception here?! We're like a mile beneath the Earth!" HE sighed and crossed his arms. "Well it's official now, every place on Earth has better cell service than Hope Springs." He muttered.

Toriel gave the child a confused glance but shook it off nonetheless. "Be good, alright? I will be back shortly." She said with a smile before leaving the room, leaving the family alone with themselves for the first time in a while.

Damian shrugged his shoulders and walked over to a nearby pillar. Sitting down on the floor as he leaned up against the large structure, folding his arms behind his head. "Welp, I don't know about you guys, but I'm gonna take a nap." He sighed.

The others glanced at each other before shrugging their shoulders, going over to sit next to the teen, who cracked open one eye. "Alright, that wasn't really an invitation but whatever." He muttered before closing his eyes once more.

"Alright, first things first-" Harper growled, lifting a finger. 'As soon as we get back home, I'm gonna take a bottle of bleach and pour it on _all_ the flowers around Hope Springs." She muttered, the others chuckling at her words, a hint of nervousness at the edges of their laughs a they recalled the creature's smiling face.

Kari's laughs died off as she glanced back down at the floor. " _If_ we get back home."

The others quickly quieted down at this, Damian even opening an eye as he tuned into the conversation. Kari noticed the looks and continued. "Well, didn't you here Toriel? She called this place our new home. And I don't know about you guys, but I'd rather like to hope I can do better than a pit for a home." She muttered.

Zephyr nodded his head. "Yeah, I have to admit Kar's got a point. I mean, I know life on the surface isn't much better for us, but-"

"-but at least we can walk around without having to look over our shoulders for a ravenous monster that's looking for an easy meal." Damian finished. "Besides, in two years, we'll finally be on the right track. I don't know about you guys, but I think I'm willing to wait." He sighed.

Frisk cast a sad look over to the others. "But what about Toriel?"

Kari sighed. "I don't know guys. I mean, I really appreciate everything Toriel's done; saving us, leading us through the Ruins, offering her home to us . . . but . . ." She trailed off slightly before continuing. "But we don't belong down here. None of us do. Maybe if - I don't know - if we had monster blood in us or something we would, but . . . we're humans. We belong with other humans."

Violet stared down at the ground sadly. "Why? I mean, humans have made it abundantly clear we _don't_ belong with them." She muttered.

Zephyr placed a hand on the girl's shoulder. "but that'll change soon. Once Kari and DJ are old enough, we'll finally be able to ditch that backwater town and start fresh somewhere." He said with a small smile. "We'll finally be a _real_ family."

Harper cracked a small smile. "Pshh, we already fight like a real family. I'd say that qualifies us."

Another laugh passed through them, the dark mood quickly lightening.

Oliver cast a glance at the empty doorway where Toriel had disappeared. "So what about Toriel?"

Kari sat in silence for a moment as she thought it over before lifting her head. "Well . . . . I don't want to just leave, especially not after she's been so nice to us . . . ."

"How 'bout this?" Zephyr ventured. "She's got to have a house around here somewhere. We spend the night, and then in the morning we leave. We get instructions on how to get out of this place." He explained, the others nodding their heads in satisfaction.

The family sat in silence for a while afterwards, merely taking in the sounds of the water trickling through the walls and across the rooms, the sound bringing a moment of peace to their otherwise hectic day. The deep shades of purple that seemed to coat all of the walls helped keep a sense of calm over any passer-byers as they stared into their inky depths, a feeling of safeness and protection rising from the gentle laps of water and peaceful -

"Welp! I'm gonna go take a look around."

The others turned to look at Harper with incredulous looks on their faces as the girl stood up and stretched out her back. "What are you doing? Toriel said to stay in here." Damian stated.

Harper merely rolled her eyes. "Oh please! Since when have you been one to listen to authority figures?"

" . . . ."

" . . . ."

"Well, can't argue with that." He said with a shrug, rising to his feet as well.

Zephyr rolled his eyes and stood up. "Sit down, you two. We aren't going anywhere." He muttered, the two letting out small groans of annoyance. "Oh come on, Zeph? What's the harm in exploring?" Harper asked, pouting up at the older boy.

He merely gave her a deadpanned look. "Really? Are you really asking that question? Do you _not_ know where we are?" He growled out.

The girl thought about it before her eyes widened in realization. "Oh . . ."

"Yeah! OH!"

Kari sighed, puffing out her cheeks as she did so before rising to her feet as well. "Zeph's right, you guys. It's safer in here. We should just stay put until Toriel comes back to get us." She explained. Harper stared at the girl with a raised brow as she placed a hand on her hip.

"Really? So what you're saying is that you _don't_ want to go explore the rest of the Ruins, which is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, you'd rather be _safe_ and stay put in a crumbling room with monsters travelling in and out with barely any weapons and no means to defend yourself?"

" . . . . . . "

" . . . . . . "

" . . . . . . "

" . . . . . . "

"Come on, let's go."

"Way to stay strong, Kar."

"Fuck off, Zephyr."

* * *

 **Well, there you have it! Chapter 2 of this new fic done! I am sooooo excited to continue on with this story. Sadly I will not be able to progress as fast as I'd like to with this story casue I'm just starting my sophomore year of highschool and I'm really buckling down on my AP classes this year so it'll be a lot of homework.**

 **But I can assure you guys, any free time I have will be dedicated to this story! . . . or napping! Whichever seems most important that day.**

 **Anyways, thanks to these people for favoriting and/or following: _Blue Feather Pegasus, Gamewins67, SaraTheAngelic, dream1990, 42anime-chan, Chickenspoon42, Pokeme197_**

 **Reviews:**

 **dream1990: Thanks so much! And congrats on being the very first person to comment on this story. You're now my favorite. Here, you get a sticker! *places golden star sticker on shirt* *it immediately falls off***

 **Blue Feather Pegasus: Thanks. And I think you're right. I don't like that scene too much anyways.**

 **Chickenspoon42: Alright, alright! Don't haunt me! Here, here take it. Take it!**

 **dream1990: Yes! A new chapter! I like it too!**

 **DON'T FORGET TO FAVORITE, FOLLOW AND COMMENT!**


	3. Chapter 3: Damn Puzzles

**Chapter 3: Damn Puzzles!**

Taking their first steps out into the next room, the group jumped as the phone in Kari's hand instantly started to ring once more.

Damian whipped his head around in shock. "Damn! Does this lady have hidden cameras or something?" He shouted in shock.

Kari rolled her eyes . . . . yet still decided to press her back against one of the far walls as she hesitantly brought the phone to her ear, glancing warily at her surroundings as she pressed the speaker button, the others slowly doing the same as they began to search for the hidden devices.

"Hello?"

" _Hello. This is Toriel."_

Harper rolled her eyes. "And here I thought it might be George Clooney." She muttered, Zephyr elbowing her in the side as he threw her a look.

" _You have not left the room have you?"_

Kari glanced at the others. "Uhh . . . nooooo! Of course not." She stated, her voice much higher in pitch that usual.

Toriel, however, seemed blissfully unaware of the fact as she continued. " _Oh good. You see, there are some tricky puzzles up ahead that I have yet to explain. I'd hate for you all to injure yourselves."_

"Pshh! Naw, we're totally fine." Kari said with a smile, only to freeze as Damian tapped her side and motioned to the Froggit in the corner of the room, everyone instantly clamming up. The girl stared wide-eyed at the monster before quickly bringing the phone up to her lips. "Uh, Okay! Gotta go. Bye!" She said quickly before slamming her thumb down on the _End Call_ button.

Everyone continued to stare at the creature before Oliver let out a small sigh of annoyance, fearlessly walking up to the monster, ignoring his family's sputters of protest.

"Hello!" He waved cheerfully.

Violet let out a sigh. "Doesn't he remember? Those things can't understand him or even speak for that matter." She stated.

 _*Ribbit, ribbit* "Excuse me humans."_

Oliver turned back to the girl with a smug smile while Violet merely stared dumbfounded, her jaw hanging open as the others warily walked forward. " _I have some advice for you about battling monsters."_ The creature said in a small raspy voice.

" _If you act a certain way or fight until you have almost defeated a creature, then they may not wish to fight you anymore."_ It explained. _"If a monster doesn't want to fight you, please show a little mercy, humans."_ He said gently before hopping out of the room, leaving the family alone in the room once more.

The group stared off where the creature had disappeared before Oliver smiled.

"I like those frogs."

The others sighed and rolled their eyes as they turned to get a better look at the room around them.

Just as before, all the walls were a deep calming shade of purple, from the cracks in the ceiling down to the tiled floors. Moss and thickly-leaved vines grew up the violet walls, stretching up towards the nonexistent sunlight, yet despite the distinct lack of light, the caverns were not dim. In fact, they seemed _alive. B_ right and vibrant, well . . . at least for a cave.

As Kari continued to run her hands over the deep ancient grooves and markings in the walls, she noticed Frisk over by the side, standing next to a pile of leaves. Once again, she was staring at something nonexistent seemingly hovering over the pile.

"Hey, Frisk. You good, kid?"

The girl turned to look at Kari, the others taking slight notice as well. "Umm . . . you still don't see this, do you?" The young girl asked.

The teens glanced at each other before shrugging their shoulders. "Sorry, kid. Still haven't reached that level of craziness yet." DJ murmured.

Frisk let out a small sigh before shrugging her shoulders, spreading her arms out wide before falling backwards in the pile, sweeping her arms and legs in the motion of making a snow-angel . . . _leaf-angel?_

Whatever.

DJ turned away from his sister making a fool of herself as he caught sight of a small doorway hidden against the back wall of the room. Latching onto Kari's wrist once more, he ignored the girl's sigh of annoyance as she was dragged against her will once more to aid in the boy's senseless adventures.

Entering through the doorway, they noticed it led into a small room around the size of a large walk-in closet. In the center of the room stood a large pedestal, a bowl of assorted candies sitting on top. "Dude, score." DJ smirked, walking over.

Next to the bowl sat a small sign.

 _Please take one._

Kari and Damian glanced at each other before turning back to the bowl. Their stomachs were beginning to hurt considering it had been a couple hours since their last decent meal (Yeah right. Like you can call school lunch _decent_ ). Yet still . . . someone had been kind enough to leave a bowl of candy out for any passer-byers, and their wishes were for people to take one piece. So . . . the answer was pretty obvious.

Damian unzipped his backpack as Kari dumped the entire bowl of candy into the bag.

Fuck it.

Quickly hustling out of the room, they met up with the others, who were getting ready to move on.

"Where were you two?" Zephyr asked.

Damian shrugged. "Breaking the rules."

"Of course."

Following the lightened path on the floor, the family walked through the next doorway and into the new room.

"Shit."

Damian sighed and slapped his hands against his legs. "Why can't things ever be easy?" He muttered.

In front of the group stood three separate paths, each leading down different doorways, none obvious as to which was the correct way to go. Harper stared up at the crossroads, glancing down each darkly-lit path before twisting around on her heel, placing her fists on her hips as she face the others once more, a confident smirk on her face. "Welp! Who wants to do a classic Scooby-Doo Split Up?" She asked.

Kari rolled her eyes. " _Jinkies!_ I don't think so" She deadpanned, folding her arms across her chest. "We should just go back and wait in the room like Toriel said." She stated.

DJ stared down the center hallway, narrowing his eyes as he tried to peer through the dark shadows that lingered along the walls. Realizing he wouldn't make much success, he walked behind Kari and placed his hands on her shoulders. "Aw, come on, Kar. It'll be fun." He coaxed.

The girl didn't budge. "Surprisingly, my definition of fun doesn't equal wandering around mysterious crumbling caves filled with dangerous ravenous monsters."

Violet let out a small sigh, adjusting her glasses once more. "As much as I hate to admit it, I think DJ and Harper might have a point."

" _We do?"_

" _They do?"_

Violet simply nodded her head. "Judging by how far the Ruins have led us so far, it's only safe to assume this cave is much bigger than we first suspected. It could be a few miles long, for all we know. And considering the fact it could take a few hours just simply traveling down _one_ corridor, it might be easier to just split up and check all three out."

Violet folded her arms behind her back and began to pace, something she always did whenever lecturing, a fact she was blissfully unaware of. "Granted we might run into a _few_ monsters, they shouldn't be much of a threat, at least judging by the ones we've seen so far." She explained.

Zephyr furrowed his brow in thought. "I don't know . . ."

Oliver shrugged. "If anything goes wrong, you guys can always just call each other. Obviously this place gets good cell reception." He nodded towards the old phone in Kari's hand.

Zephyr stayed silent for a moment, pondering his sister's words as he glanced back up at the three corridors. What she said made sense. It _would_ take forever to navigate each and every tunnel, and that was assuming these corridors didn't branch off into even _more_ tunnels farther in. Still, he couldn't help that nagging sense of fear in the pit of his stomach. He never liked leaving the others in strange places for very long, especially when said place is filled with monsters. But, he knew they were right.

He sighed. "Fine. Let's split up."

"Whoo!" DJ said, pumping his fist in the air before turning back towards the tunnel, dragging a dumbfounded Kari behind him. "Let's go!" He shouted, only for Zephyr to latch onto the boy's shoulder. "Slow your roll, you two. You think I'm just gonna let you idiots go off by yourself?" He asked, turning a stern glare at the two teens.

Kari snorted. "Fine, whatever. But who's gonna watch the twins?" She asked.

Zephyr turned to look back at the other four before walking forward. He placed his hands underneath Oliver's arms, hoisting the boy into the air. "Violet watches Oliver." He dropped the boy into his sister's oblivious arms, the girl letting out a small grunt as she unceremoniously caught the kid.

Lifting Frisk into the air, Zephyr dropped her into _Harper's_ arms. "Harper watches Frisk." This time, the girl didn't even bothering catching the kid. She just continued to pick at her nails as Frisk dropped to the floor with a small _oof._

. . . . was I supposed to _catch_ her?

Kari motioned to the curly-headed girl while giving Zephyr a _seriously?_ look. The boy shrugged his shoulders before latching onto _both_ Kari and Damian's wrists as he began to march down the middle hallway, throwing over his shoulder as he disappeared into the darkness,

"NOBODY DIE!"

The four youngest blinked in silence before turning to look at each other. Shrugging her shoulders, Harper reached down and extended her hand out for her sister to take. Frisk felt a small smile form on her face as she placed her hand into her sister's as the two began to walk down the far left hall. "Be careful, you two!" Harper called out, Oliver and Violet giving small waves as they watched their siblings disappear.

Violet let out a sigh as she turned down to Oliver. "Well, what do ya' say? Wanna go exploring?" She asked with a smile.

"Yeah!"

"GREAT!" Instantly, the girl whipped out a notebook from who-knows-where and flipped it open. "Cause there's so much I want to start documenting! Oh, do you think we might be able to get some samples from some of the monsters down here?" She squealed in delight, oblivious to her brother trying to suppress his sigh as he turned and began to walk down the hall.

Unsurprisingly, the walls of the next room were as purple as the last. More vines of moss crawled up the walls around the room, leading to the door at the far end. But blocking said exit was a large, tall row of spikes gleaming in the light of the room. Oliver and Violet shared a look before walking forward.

As his sister began to examine more of the room, Oliver wandered over to the sign on the back of the far wall. reaching up onto his tippy-toes, the boy was just barely able to make out what it said.

"Hey, Violet!"

THe girl turned towards her brother's call, noticing him craning to see one of the signs plastered to the wall. Walking over, she watched him push off the wall and face her, pointing to the middle of the room. "Three out of the four gray rocks recommend you push them."

She followed his finger and noticed a large grey rock laying next to what appeared to be a platform of some kind. Turning a small glance towards her brother, she stared back down at the rock, kneeling down next to the platform.

Raising a hand, she pressed it down onto the platform, putting a bit of pressure underneath her hand. Immediately, the sound of _whirring, clicks_ and _pops_ sounded as the spikes quickly retracted back into the floor.

Lifting her hand off the platform, the spikes reappeared just as quickly.

Then back down.

Then back up.

Then back down.

Then back up.

Violet hummed in thought before turning over to look at the rock, sharing a small smile with her brother as the two pushed the rock together onto the platform. Once again, the spikes fell back down into the floor, leaving them a straight path for the door.

Rising back to her feet, Violet held out her hand for a high-five, the small boy having to jump to connect his palm with her, a large grin plastered onto his face, nevertheless.

Reaching behind her, the girl began to jot down a few notes, even including a few sketches here and there of the platform, rock and of possible mechanics and gadgets underneath their very feet that could power said puzzles.

She threw the boy a small grin as she snapped the book shut, pushing the pencil behind her ear. "Come on, Oli. Let's see what other puzzles we can solve around here."

* * *

"Do you think people are starting to wonder where we are?"

Harper glanced down at Frisk, who was staring up at her expectantly, waiting for her to answer.

The pair had been wandering around from room to room for quite some time now with little interaction with monsters, puzzles or anything of interest. All in all, it was quite boring. So, the two had merely walked in silence for most of the time, listening to the distant croaks of Froggits, the chirps of other monsters and the echoing drips of water leaking through small cracks in the walls.

To be honest, Harper enjoyed the silence over the alternative. Don't get her wrong, she loved her sister just as much as she loved any other member of her family. It was just. . . the two never had anything to talk about. They had _nothing_ in common. Oh sure, the same could be said for any _other_ member of her family, but it was their differences that made their interactions all the more meaningful.

Kari was fair and dependable. Sure the girl had a mild temper, but who doesn't. Whenever Harper needed to get away from it all, get some reassurance, or heck, just talk to a girl, Kari was always her best bet.

Zephyr wasn't too far off from his sister. He was calm and responsible, and he was the closest thing Harper had to a real guardian. The boy was always ready with comforting words and a warm hug. But the thing that astounded Harper the most was how _patient_ and _calm_ the boy could be, especially around _them_. After all, they were not the easiest kids to handle. Yet somehow, the boy managed to do it _without_ popping pills day in and day out.

Now Damian was almost the exact _opposite_ of his brother. He was prickly and a _major_ hothead. Nobody clashed more than her and DJ, except for maybe Kari, which the boy seemed to have a knack for rubbing the wrong way. Honesty, Harper was surprised Kari hadn't murdered the boy yet. Still, despite their arguments, Harper couldn't think of bickering with _anyone_ else. After all, nobody could make her laugh like DJ.

But if you want to talk about opposites, then Violet and her took the cake, the whipped cream, _and_ the cherry on top. While Harper was all for feeling good on the inside _AND_ the outside, Violet couldn't care less about her looks. After all, she'd been faring the same dorky glasses for three years straight. That added to the fact the girl _always_ had her nose in a dusty old book, the two couldn't be more far apart. And still, despite their clashing attitude, Harper loved it when her sister went on her little rants and lectures. It was one of the only times she'd seen her sister _truly_ happy.

Though, if you wanted to talk about happy, then Oliver was the star attraction. Honestly, Harper couldn't remember a time where the boy wasn't smiling for more than ten minutes. He always had something to smile about, even when he really didn't. No matter where they were, what was happening or what day it was, Oliver always had a smile for her. And that was enough for her to absolutely adore the boy.

Then there was Frisk.

Honestly, the most she knew about the girl was that she barely left her brother's side, she wasn't opposed to flirting to get what she wanted, and she was pretty decent with a sketchbook. To her, Frisk was a mystery. And she didn't like mysteries.

Though despite that, despite their awkwardness, despite their reluctance to be near each other, Frisk never _once_ got mad at her. She never snapped at her. Never yelled at her. Never cried at her. Never complained to her. She'd never been anything less than a beautiful sister.

And for that, Harper was ashamed.

Ashamed she'd never taken the time to get to know her little sister as she had with her other siblings. Ashamed she knew so little about the girl. Ashamed it had taken _falling down a damn hole_ to figure out that the problem was not Frisk, but her.

No.

Not anymore.

She was not about to let their _falling_ go to waist. Quickly making a promise to herself, she vowed to get to know the _real_ Frisk by the end of their journey, if it was the last thing she did!

She glanced down at the girl, cocking a brow in confusion as she noticed Frisk was staring at her with an expectant face. Wait. Hadn't the girl just asked her a question? . . . . . . . . . . Whoops!

"Umm . . ." She rubbed the back of her neck awkwardly. "Sorry. What was that?"

Frisk cocked her head at her sister's nervousness. Since when did _Harper_ get nervous? Especially around her?

"Umm . . . I asked if you think anyone's looking for us yet." She repeated.

Harper stared down at her sister's perfectly round face and small strands of chocolate hair hanging down in front of her eyes. After a moment, the girl gave a warm smile and reached down, lifting the girl off the ground with one fell _swoop_ , Frisk letting out a small yelp of shock as she felt her feet swing off the ground.

Suddenly, the girl felt herself get hoisted around before landing on Harper's back, the girl placing her arms around the bottom half of Frisk's legs as the young girl wrapped her arms around her sister's neck. "You know what? I bet they have the whole SWAT team looking for us." Harper chuckled, continuing to walk forward as she gave Frisk a piggy-back ride, the girl giving a grin of her own. "Really?"

"Oh yeah, I bet they got the cops, the firefighters, the Marines, the Army, everyone!" She bellowed, Frisk giggling behind her. "You really think so?"

"You bet your bottom I do!" The girl smirked. "Now come on. Let's see if we can beat the others!" She said with a grin.

"Yeah!" Frisk chirped, wrapping her arms around the girl tighter.

"Alright, here we g-AHHH!"

The pair screamed as they _literally_ broke through the floor. After a short fall, they landed on a thick bed of red leaves, cushioning their impact. The girls blinked in shock before turning to face each other.

After a moment of silence, they both broke out into a fit of laughter, falling backwards into the pile of leaves once more as they gathered up armfuls and threw them up into the air, throwing bundles of the colorful leaves at each other with large grins.

"Hope the others are careful where they step." Harper chuckled, hurling another fistful of leaves.

* * *

" **AHHH!"**

Kari and Zephyr could only look on with shocked faces as they watched the floor swallow Damian up, the boy's scream drifting up from the floor as he disappeared beneath it.

Sharing wide-eyed looks with each other, the pair warily crept closer to the hole where the teen had fallen through, Kari craning her neck forward as she tried to see through the darkness below. "Damian?!"

. . . . .

. . . . .

". . . Are you dead?"

. . . . .

. . . . .

. . . . .

" . . . . _Sadly, that is a negatory._ "

"Oh, good. Then get your ass back up here. We don't have time for your goofing off."

A loud stream of stomps and mumbled curses could be heard through the walls as the boy suddenly slid head-first out of a small slit in the wall, crash-landing on the floor in a rather awkward position. "Oh, I'm sorry. Is me injuring myself taking up too much of your time?"

Zephyr and Kari shared another look before shrugging their shoulders.

"Kind of."

"Yeah, actually."

Damian let out a growl of frustration as he rose to his feet and brushed himself off, flicking his siblings the bird as he walked over towards the large floor-plan once more, surveying the crackling ground. Off to the side, he noticed the hole where he'd fallen through the first time. "Alright . . . ." He reached his foot out to hover over the tile _next_ to the one he'd used before. " . . .how 'bout this one?"

Gingerly, he placed the toe of his sneaker onto the tile, shutting his eyes tightly as they made contact. After a moment, he opened his eyes and sounded an _'ah-hah!'_ of victory as he stepped onto the tile.

 _CRACK!_

"AHHHH!"

 _THUD!_

"SON OF A BITCH!"

Kari and Zephyr let out sighs as they walked over to one of the nearby walls and took seats on the floor, rolling their eyes as Damian slid out of the wall once more, raising a hand into the air as he pointed a finger up in determination. "We're goin' again!"

Zephyr face-palmed as the teen fell through the floor for a third time. And a fourth. And a fifth. Eventually, his forehead began to hurt, so he instead folded his arms underneath his head and rested his back against the wall, the sounds of DJ's frustrated yells and profanities surprisingly relaxing.

"Alright! This time for SURE!"

Damian felt his chest heaving painfully as he slid down onto the floor through the wall slot once more. Instead of rising to his feet, he merely laid there, face down as he sobbed into the floor. "I hate this place!" He screamed, although since his voice was muffled by the ground, it sounded more like " _I cake tits mace"_

Finally, after a relaxing moment of literally wallowing in self-pity and tears, the teen forced himself to his feet once more, taking a deep breath as he closed his eyes, running a hand through his hair. "Alright, I got this." He mumbled to himself, opening his eyes once more.

"DUDE! Hurry up and get over here!" Kari shouted from the other doorway, Zephyr standing behind her, his arms crossed in annoyance.

Damian blinked in shock, his mouth hanging open as he stuttered and sputtered like an idiot. "I . . . B-but I . . . when . . . how did you DO THAT?!"

Zephyr rolled his eyes. "It was pretty easy. After you fell through _every single_ hole except for the ones on this path, we kind of figured it out ourselves." He stated, motioning down to the floor. And he was right. Literally every single hole had been caved in except for a certain few creating a zig-zag pattern to the other door across the room.

Damian stared down at the multitude of holes now present in the floor. "I . . . and y-you . . . . w-why . . . ." He sucked in a breath through his nose. "You know what? WHATEVER! THIS STILL COUNTS AS A VICTORY FOR ME!" He screamed, stomping through the path angrily, only to stumble slightly and trip into one of the nearby holes.

"AHHH!"

 _THUD!_

"SON OF A FUCKING FUCK!"

Kari smirked as she placed her hands on her knees and leaned over one of the holes. "So how's that victory feel, D?"

. . . . .

. . . . .

. . . . .

"Really wish you could see which finger I'm holding up right now, Kar."

* * *

Oliver grunted as he pushed all of his weight against the large gray stone, the rock skidding harshly against the purple tiles underneath his feet. His sneakers slid across the floor as he continued to forcefully shove the stone until it eventually made contact with the shining gray panel on the floor, a soft _click_ reaching his ears.

Letting out a sigh of relief, he took a deep breath and wiped the small pebbles and dust off of his palms. Next to him, Violet strained to push the middle rock, leaving the last one unattended.

He raised his head to stare at the gleaming silver spikes that blocked their path once again. before moving over to the rock.

Placing his hands onto the rough surface once more, the child grunted as he gave a hard shove.

" _Whoa there, partner! Who said you could push me around?"_

"Ahh!" Oliver leapt backwards in shock, staring down at the rock that had seemingly snarked at him.

" _Ahh! What are ya' screaming for?"_

The boy gave the rock a look of disbelief before whipping his head towards Violet, who shared his look of shock. Suddenly, the girl clutched her head and turned away, crouching down to the floor. "This place is making me question _everything!"_ She moaned as she began to rock back and forth, seemingly on the verge of a mental breakdown.

Great.

Oliver sighed in exasperation, but decided to let his sister work out her own mental problems. "Umm . . . hello, Mr. Rock?" He stated, unsure of how to greet the boulder. Though in his defense, he'd never had to treat a rock civilly before.

The boulder let out a hum. _"I'm doin' all right, son. How 'bout you?"_

"Dang, this rock's more polite than actual people."

" _What was that?"_

"Nothing!" Oliver quickly stated. Casting a small glance over at the spikes up ahead, the boy shuffled his foot against the ground. 'Umm . . . . excuse me, Mr. Rock. Do you think you could maybe, if it's not too much trouble that it, do you think you could move over a bit?"

If it had a head, Oliver was sure it would be cocking it right now. " _Hmm . . . you want me to move?"_

"Yes, sir. If you can."

Oliver imagined a nod. " _Okay, just for you, pumpkin."_

The boy smiled, only to pause as he noticed the rock had only moved a few inches forward. "Umm . . . . do you think maybe you could do that again?"

 _"Hmm? You want me to move again? Alright, how's this?"_

He moved two inches to the left.

Oliver sighed.

 _This is gonna take awhile._

* * *

"No, a little more to the right. No, your _other_ right. Now back a little more. No! No, that's too much! Now just a teeny bit to the left. NO! _YOUR LEFT!_ There! Right there! STOP!"

Oliver sucked in a deep breath, gently releasing it through his nose as he tried to stay positive. After a painstaking ten minutes of fussing with the _fuc - - fudging_ rock, he'd finally gotten the hint and landed on the platform, the spikes finally shooting into the floor.

Even Violet was getting annoyed.

But Oliver refused to get upset. REFUSED! Instead, the boy just put on another smile as he turned to the rock. "Thank you, sir." He said kindly before grabbing Violet's hand, the pair making their way over to the door.

Suddenly, the spikes shot back up, nearly slicing off a portion of Oliver's hair.

The two kids whipped back around. "DUDE!" Violet snapped.

Oliver imagined the rock's stupi _\- - confused_ face. _"Oh, you wanted me to_ stay _on there?"_

"YEESSSS!"

" _Kids, you're giving me a real workout."_

The spikes slid back down into the floor.

Oliver sucked in another breath. " _Thank_ you." He hissed through clenched teeth, his smile looking more like a deranged grin now.

Exiting the room, the boy let out a moan and covered his face with his hands. "Uggg . . . . why do people make it so hard to be _nice_? Even _rocks_ do it! ROCKS!" Violet said nothing, merely gave the boy a sympathetic pat on the head.

* * *

"Alright, I'll be honest with you, I'm not a fan of that thing's wiggling." Harper muttered as the two girls stared down at the jiggling green blob that could easily be mistaken for jello . . . . which it had been. Safe to say, Harper was thoroughly disappointed when she'd discovered the truth.

"Aww . . . I don't know. I think it's kind of cute." Frisk said, staring down at the mass, hands on her knees.

"Of course you do."

Suddenly, the blob gave an especially vigorous wiggle, Frisk letting out a giggle as she placed her hands onto her hips and began to wiggle as well, her hair flopping back and forth into her face as she did.

Harper stared at her sister with an incredulous look. "What the heck are you doing?"

"I'm giving it a _sexy_ wiggle!"

" . . . . A _what now?"_

Frisk let out another giggle. "Come on, try it."

Harper stared down at the jiggling jello impostor before letting out an exaggerated sigh of irritation. Reluctantly placing her hands onto her hips, she began to wiggle in a fashion not unlike her sister.

"So this is my life now? Awesome."

After a few more moments of their very meaningful conversation translated through a series of sexy wiggles, the blob finally seemed to have enough, slowly backing out of the room.

"Bye, Moldsmall!" Frisk called, reaching up onto her toes as she waved to the blob.

"What'd you call it?"

"I named him Moldsmal." Frisk explained as the pair entered the next room.

"Of course you did." Harper muttered, scruffing up her sister's already messy hair before raising a brow at the hall they were entering. The room was empty, save for a small table off to the side and an even smaller mouse hole cracked into the wall. On the table sat a peculiarly-colored block of cheese.

Walking over, Harper leaned down and poked at the food, letting out a moan of disgust upon noticing it was stuck to the table. "Ugg! That's just gross. How long do ya' think this thing's been down here?"

. . . .

"Frisk?"

Turning her head, she noticed her sister reaching her hand out into open air, something she seemed to be doing a lot of nowadays. It was as if she could see something they couldn't. Hmm . . . . .

Well whatever! It probably wasn't important.

Gently grabbing the girl's hand, Harper began to lead her out of the hall, Frisk letting a smile form on her face. "I bet that mouse'll get that cheese off the table one day."

"Yeah, I'm sure there's a spare chainsaw lying around here somewhere."

* * *

Kari couldn't suppress another giggle as she picked out another leaf from the mangled mess that was now Damian's hair. The boy let out another huff as he folded his arms across his chest. "It's not funny, Kar."

"I dunno. It's kind of funny." Zephyr smirked as the trio continued to walk through the halls.

DJ let out a growl. "Yeah, well you wouldn't think it was so funny if _you_ were the one getting beat up left and right." The boy snapped, eye twitching angrily. After their hellish experience in the maze room, the trio had continued on their way, only to encounter monster after monster.

Most of the fights were uneventful, if you could even call them fights. Though Damian _did_ seem to get the brunt of them. He had gotten shot with Loox's eye beams, Froggit's flies shot at his face, drenched with Whimsun's tears, slimmed by a Moldsmal and he was pretty sure some of Migosp's bugs were still crawling underneath his shirt.

"Look, let's just get to the end of these Ruins or whatever so we can get out of here." DJ muttered, letting out a rough hack, eyes widening as he coughed out a fly, the bug buzzing out of sight.

Kari and Zephyr's cheeks puffed as they tried to stifle their laughs, Damian shooting them a death glare as he marched down the hall.

Entering the next room, the trio immediately froze upon seeing the new creature laying down in the middle of the path, effectively blocking them from continuing. Damian stared wide-eyed at the figure before slowly leaning over towards the others.

"You see the ghost too, right?"

"Uh-huh."

"Yeah."

He gave a nod. "Excellent."

And it was true. There was a _literal_ ghost sleeping in a pile of leaves. Well . . . _pretending_ to sleep.

Kari let out a sigh of annoyance. "So is _everything_ we were told doesn't exist just gonna show up today?! Alright, bring on the werewolves and vampires!"

Zephyr rolled his eyes as the trio slowly began to approach the figure.

"Zzzzzzzzz"

"Zzzzzzzzz"

"Zzzzzzzzz

" _Are they gone yet?"_

 _"Zzzzzzzzz"_

Quickly sharing a look with the others, Zephyr crouched down. "Umm . . . nope. Still here."

"Zzzzzzzzz"

Damian let out a sigh before walking over to one of the piles, grabbing a stick before walking back over to the ghost. "Hey, buddy. Could you maybe move it, please?" He grumbled, poking the stick at the ghost . . . . _through_ the ghost?

The entity reluctantly opened his eyes and floated up into the air, staring down at the trio as they quickly huddled together, Kari and Zephyr throwing a glare at their compadre, who gave a nervous chuckle.

Kari opened her mouth and sucked in a breath, only to pause as she immediately noticed the ghost was already welling up with tears. She blinked before turning to DJ. "I haven't even said anything yet!" She said with an exasperated sigh.

Damian, however didn't share her annoyance. Instead the boy resorted to covering his head with his arms and ducking behind the girl. "Oh no! Not another Whimsun! No more tears! I _just_ got dry!"

Only, the tears that shot _towards_ them didn't _soak_ them as they dripped onto their shoulders, they _burned_ , like HELL.

Three cries of pain shot out of the teens as they felt their skin sizzle as the tears burned through their clothes and ate away at skin and muscle. Stumbling backwards, Zephyr instantly took to the defensive, pulling out his knife as he stood in front of his siblings, who were still trying to blink the spots out of their eyes.

Glancing down, Zephyr took slight notice of the glowing cyan heart floating just above his chest, but decided to ignore it as he felt himself go weightless as he took flight, similar to when they'd fought Flowey. Although, unlike the previous fight, in which the boy had wanted nothing more than to feel the grotesque plant crunch underneath his shoes, he realized his approach would have to be much different with the ghost.

Upon notice that his knife would do little to help him _(duh, it's a frikkin ghost)_ Zephyr pocketed it once more. Instead, he decided to float up to the ghost and give a small smile. "Umm . . . hi?" He called gingerly, unsure as to how the monster would respond. "I'm Zephyr." He stated, holding out his hand.

. . . . .

. . . . .

. . . . .

"Umm . . . ."

"Oh, right. No hands."

The ghost blinked his eyes, almost as if he were surprised Zephyr was actually taking the time to talk to him, as if he'd simply expected him to lunge threateningly at him immediately. "Oh? Umm . . . hello. My name is Napstablook, but . . . you probably don't care much about that."

Another wave of tears seeped from the ghost's eyes, the boy muttering a curse underneath his breath as he dove back to the ground, the harsh movement alerting Kari and DJ to the fresh barrage of tears as they rolled out of the way as well, the projectiles sizzling and leaving dark marks on the ground behind them.

Zephyr floated backwards towards the others, keeping his eyes on the ghost in front of him as he came to hover between the two humans. "Alright, any advice you two?"

DJ glanced up at the ghost, watching its eyes well up a third time. "Umm . . . I don't know. How do you handle a depressed ghost?"

Kari's eyes immediately lit up in realization. She shoved Zephyr forward, the boy letting out a small yelp before whipping around mid-float, glaring intently at the girl. "You have to talk to him!"

"Me? Why me?"

"He's depressed! You're great at fixing that shit! You've had plenty of practice with us!"

Zephyr face-palmed, letting out an aggravated sigh.

"HEADS UP!"

All three pressed their bodies down to the ground as another round of tears shot over their heads. "Alright, alright, fine!" Zephyr growled, floating back up into the air as he turned back to the ghost. "Umm . . . hey. Me again."

Napstablook turned a weary gaze at the boy. "Oh, you're still here?"

"Yep, still here." Zephyr gave a chuckle. "So, what're you doing out here?"

"I come out here cause nobody else does . . ." He cast a glance at the group of humans. " . . . Usually. It's one of my favorite places to lay on the ground and feel like garbage."

Zephyr blinked.

Kari and Damian did as well.

The boy let out a small nervous chuckle, cupping his hands together. "Well, that's different . . . ." He trailed off.

"I'm sorry, I'm being a bother, aren't I?" Napstablook muttered softly, looking more and more like a sad deflated marshmallow as the battle went on. "That's usually how these things go."

Surprisingly to the ghost, Zephyr shook his head. "Nope. You're not bothering us at all." He stated, Damian raising his index finger up as he opened his mouth.

"Umm actually-"

"Shut it."

"Shutting it."

More tears began to form in the corner of the ghost's eyes as another wave shot out at them. They did little to stop the older as he continued to talk while simultaneously dodging tears left and right. "Umm . . . you want me to introduce you to the people you're crying at?"

"Sure, I've got nothing better to do.

"Alright, well that's Kari." Zephyr stated, pointing towards the girl as she ran screaming past him, a line of tears fast on her tail. "And that moron currently trying to blink the stars out of his eyes is Damian." He muttered, rolling his eyes at the boy who was currently laying flat on the ground, his arms and legs stretched out all over the place as he let out a moan, the wall next to him now included with a dent that perfectly matched the shape and size of DJ's head.

"Heh, nice names."

"THANKS!" Kari shouted, still running.

Zephyr hissed in pain as a tear grazed past his shoulder, even the small contact enough to burn the skin. Yet the boy refused to get mad at the ghost, for he knew it would only make thing worse. Whether he wanted to admit it or not, the kids were right. The boy had a _ton_ of experience dealing with these kind of problems. After all, he'd had to deal with more than one depressed sibling.

And who could really blame them? He certainly couldn't. With the amount of bullshit they had to put up with, Zephyr was surprised none of his siblings had actually ever attempted to end it all . . . permanently. Well, except for one.

He cast Damian a small glance before turning back to the ghost.

"What are you all doing down here anyways?" Napstablook asked. "You don't have to answer to me it you don't want to."

Zephyr shook his head. "No, it's okay. Well my siblings and I fell down the mountain a couple hours ago and now we're trying to find a way out of here." The boy explained, the ghost giving a small, almost nonexistent nod. "Oh." Was all he said in response.

"So you live around here?" Zephyr asked, dodging another round of tears. He had to keep the ghost talking, try to get him to warm up to him. Maybe if he could do that, the attacks would stop. Well, at least he hoped. If they didn't, he had no other clue what else they could do.

"No, I live farther into the Underground. My house is in Waterfall."

 _Farther in? Waterfall? Just how big is this place?_ Zephyr asked himself, focusing back onto the ghost. "So what're you doing all the way out here?"

Napstablook shrugged. "I don't have any other friends in Waterfall. Well, come to think of it, I don't really have any friend here either, but it's quiet here. And I don't get in anyone's way, well . . . at least I'd hoped." He murmured, casting the group a small apologetic look.

"Uh, no it's all right." Zephyr reassured the ghost, letting another smile fall onto his face. "So . . . not a lot of friends, huh?"

The ghost stayed silent, more tears pouring from his eyes.

"Well . . . listen Napstablook. I don't know you very well and you don't really know me but . . . ." Zephyr bit the inside of his cheek. Was this really wise. He knew nothing about the ghost other than he wasn't a very chipper person. And the ghost had done nothing to earn his trust, especially considering the fact he was literally attacking his siblings at that very moment.

Yet, there was just something sad and pathetic about the ghost that could rival the emotions of a kicked puppy. It was those feelings that made the boy feel nothing but patience and understanding for him. He took another moment before making up his mind. "You wanna be friends?"

The ghost's eyes widened at the boy's words, his head slowly turning upwards. "W-what?"

"Friends. You and me . . . and probably these two morons."

"HEY!"

"You know it's true."

. . . .

. . . .

"Yeah."

Napstablook let out a small quiet chuckle as he watched the siblings converse with each other. _That would be nice_. The ghost thought to himself, glancing up at the tears that were still bouncing around the room. "Oh, you guys wanna see something?" He asked softly.

Zephyr gave a nod, to which the ghost began to cry once more.

Damian raised his hands slightly. "Great, we have front row seats to Depression." He muttered, Zephyr elbowing him in the gut. Unlike before, the tears instead flew up into the air, forming a small top-hat on top of the ghost's head.

Zephyr gave a small chuckle at the sight. "That's cool, man." He laughed before turning back to the ghost. "So, friends?"

The ghost stared at the boy and then back over to the two other humans. After a moment of thought, the ghost turned away."We probably shouldn't. I'd just weigh you all down." _Just like I did him._ Another batch of tears flew towards them. "You all should probably just go away."

The fresh wave was unexpected, the group barely having enough time to blink, let alone dodge. The tears shot into their skin, the feeling of bubbling acid tearing at muscle and bone making their screams increase in volume as they writhed.

After a moment, the burning feeling ebbed slightly, but it was definitely still present, hindering their movements even more than before.

Damian let out a growl. "Alright, I've had just about enough of this." He growled, the pain in his arm now bubbling over to anger and frustration. And it wanted out. He watched his own heart begin to glow brighter as he readied to fly up into the air and teach the ghost a few lessons about crying in private, only for Zephyr to hold his hand out.

"Wait." He stated, his tone of voice leaving little room for argument. That, however, didn't stop them from trying.

"Zephyr, this obviously isn't working." Kari sighed through gritted teeth, the pain in her shoulder making her want to cry out. "We're going to have to try something else.

The boy was persistent. "I can get through to him. We just need to stay calm. Be patient.

Damian narrowed his eyes. "How the fuck are we supposed to be patient when these monsters keep shooting us in the face?!" He shouted, flailing his arms around for added emphasis.

" _Stand. Down."_ He growled out.

"But Zeph, we-"

Zephyr gave the boy a murderous glare.

" _Weeeee're_ gonna wait here like good little children while you finish." DJ finished sweetly, shooting over to cower behind Kari , the girl folding her arms over her chest as she rolled her eyes.

Suddenly, the tears that had continued to fly around the room quickly froze in mid-air before _poofing_ away. The teens glanced at each other in confusion before turning towards Napstablook, who gave a small shrug. "Sorry. Not really feeling up to it right now."

Zephyr took a deep calming breath before opening his eyes once more, never noticing how they were now _glowing_ a bright cyan, the exact same color as his soul. "Listen Napstablook, I understand you're upset. And I'd understand if you want us to leave right now, but if you'd let us, I'd really like to be your friend." He said softly.

The ghost blinked before turning to look at the boy, slightly surprised to find his eyes were literally _glowing._ He gave a small shake of his head. "We really shouldn't. You seem to be going places. I'm useless."

Zephyr narrowed his eyes, his soul slowly beginning to glow brighter and brighter with each word he spoke. "I don't think you are. No, I _know_ you aren't. Napstablook, times like these can be hard, but if you let me be your friend, I promise you I will never think you're useless. I'll never think you're a burden. I'll only think of you as such. A _friend."_ He gave a small smirk as he folded his arms across his chest. "And I'll wait as long as I have to. I'm a pretty _patient_ person."

Napstablook gave it some thought before shifting his gaze away, only to turn back as he watched Zephyr extend his hand out once more.

. . . . .

. . . . .

. . . . .

"Umm . . ."

"Damn. Still no hands. Heh, see how good I am at this?"

The ghost gave a small laugh, and not just a fake one. A true, actual laugh. Something he hadn't been able to produce in longer than he could remember. He gave a small smile. "I . . . I guess it wouldn't be _so_ bad to have a few friends again." He said softly, gazing over at the others, who glanced at each other before giving small waves.

"You know, I come here to be alone . . . . but today I met someone nice." Napstablook stated, smiling up at the boy, who quickly returned it. He then blinked back into reality. "Oh, I'm rambling again. I'll get out of your way." He said before floating back up into the air. "See you around?" He called nervously.

"I'm sure we will." Zephyr responded, giving a small two-fingered salute to the ghost before he disappeared from view.

The boy smiled at where the ghost had last been, only to yelp as a large weight suddenly leapt onto his back. "WHOO! Zephyr, the Ghost Whisperer!" Damian cheered, wrapping his arms around his brother's neck.

The boy sighed before unhooking the boy's arms, Dj letting out a yelp as he crashed to the ground. Kari chuckled as she walked over, only to pause as she took notice of one slight difference. "Zeph, what's with your eyes?"

Zephyr furrowed his brow. "What about them?"

"They're _glowing!"_

"What?" Damian asked, rising to his feet as he tried to get a better look, only to blink in shock as his brother turned to face him. "Whoa, man. That's weird." He stated, staring into the deep cyan lights.

Kari scrunched her nose in thought. _What the heck caused this?_ She asked herself, realizing Zephyr's soul was still visible instead of disappearing like usual after a fight ended. And not only that, but it was shining brighter than usual and _. . . .spinning?_ What the heck was going on?!

"Zeph, you have any idea what's happening?" She asked.

The boy turned to look at his soul before shaking his head. "No idea. I _did_ feel a little tingly as I kept talking to Napstablook, but all I was doing was focusing on keeping myself calm and staying patie-"

Suddenly, as if his words had been a catalyst, his soul began to spin violently, the room quickly beginning to glow in a bright blue light. Everyone stared at the soul, which by extension, meant Zephyr. The boy glanced at the others "Umm . . . is this normal."

They shrugged.

The spinning stopped as a bright burst of light made them all flinch and turn away.

They first thing they noticed was that the glow from Zephyr's soul was now so bright, the entire room was lit by it, the walls tinted a light blue color. The second thing they noticed was the wolf.

Eyes widening, the trio gasped and quickly backed up, their backs pressing up against one of the walls as they stared at the new creature in front of them.

The wolf was exceptionally large, almost to the point where it could be mistaken for a bear or a lion, if only judging on size. It had stark white fur which slowly dripped down into cyan blue at the tips of the tail and the bottom of its paws, which weren't even solid. No, its tail and paws seemed to dissolve into shimmering specks of light and dust at the ends, yet the wolf never faltered in its step.

Though, that wasn't even the most noticeable feature. No, it was its eyes. They were _pupil-less_ and seemed to light up the entire room, the icy blue so deep and vivid they seemed to freeze all three teens in their place, unable to move, unable to fight, unable to speak. But even through that, the strangest thing was that the wolf didn't even seem to be real. It was slightly transparent and gave off the impression of a spirit.

The wolf lowered its large head to stare at the three, eyes blinking once before it took a step forward.

Instantly, Zephyr snapped back into focus as he whipped out his knife, pointing his shaking hand at the creature.

The action did little to deter the wolf, if it even did at all. The dog merely continued to slowly approach the trio, stopping right in front of their faces, large eyes staring right at them.

The room was eerie silent, save for the slight shimmering sound the wolf's tail and paws made. Slowly, the wolf lowered its head and closed its eyes, resting the crown of its head against Zephyr's chest. The boy blinked in shock as he stared at the creature before turning back to his siblings, who each gave him the same dumbfounded look.

Hesitantly, Zephyr reached out and began to stroke the large wolf, running his fingers through the canine's soft white fur, Lifting its head once more, the wolf opened its shimmering eyes, meeting Zephyr's equally blue ones before the dog gently touched the tip of its nose with Zephyr's soul.

Instantly, another flash of light shot through the room as the wolf became like a trail of magic as it began to circle around Zephyr, connecting with his arm before seeping in completely. Just like that, his soul disappeared and with it, so did the glow of his eyes, the room instantly returning to its deep purple hue.

. . . . .

. . . . .

. . . . .

. . . . .

. . . . .

"What the FUCK just happened?"

For once, nobody slapped DJ for his profanity, for they were all thinking the same thing.

Zephyr shook his head slightly before reaching for his arm, slowly rolling up his sleeve. They all blinked in shock at the sight. On his upper bicep, there was now a Celtic tattoo of a wolf head.

Kari stared at the sight for a moment longer before letting out a groan, rubbing the bridge of her nose in exasperation. "Alright, I've had just about enough of this place." She muttered, marching over to the door.

"You and me both." Zephyr sighed, quickly following after her, dragging a disgruntled Damian behind him.

"Oh what? So _you_ can have a tattoo, but _we_ can't?"

 _SLAP_

"OWW!"

* * *

 **Finally! Chapter 3 completed.**

 **So, you got a look into Harper's mind _and_ Zephyr had quite a new experience. As the story progresses, you will get windows into what the other characters are feeling just like Harper. You will also get flashbacks and a _ton_ of backstory later on. Also, more explanations as to what happened with Zephyr (along with what hasn't happened yet) will come to light in the NEXT chapter.**

 **Just be _patient!_**

 **EH? Get it?**

 **Anyways, thanks to these people for favoriting and/or following: _Fanfictionlover124, SaraTheAngelic, Zitroana, cassjo, musicalocelot, AppleCantRead13;_ _dream1990, Gamewins67_**

 **Reviews:**

 **musicalocelot: Yeah, I think this is a really great concept for this game, but when I looked, I couldn't really find many stories with this topic, so I decided to create one for myself. So I really hope you enjoy it cause I've already planned out everything, from the battle sequences to a backbone for a sequel.**

 **AceMasterz: _*Wink, wink*_ Great minds think alike**


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